


Once Upon A Time and Far Far Away

by WordMusician



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, F/M, Teen Angst, Teen Romance, fairy tale without the fairies or dragons or magic, more like Game of Thrones set in Gallifrey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-04
Updated: 2019-02-05
Packaged: 2019-10-04 10:25:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 35,718
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17302925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WordMusician/pseuds/WordMusician
Summary: Political plots and schemes and dastardly deeds keep a plucky Rose Tyler from realizing her true potential and true love.  Can the young people sort through the lies and follow their hearts or are they doomed to conform to centuries of tradition?





	1. A Bit of Backstory

**Author's Note:**

> I'm never written a quasi medevial fairy tale story before...still not certain this qualifies, maybe more fantasy than fairy tale except I used the fairy tale plot architypes.... Oh well, I hope you have a much fun with it as I have.

Once upon a time or so they say, there were three duchies that shared a mountain range, a valley and a river.  None of them were very large, but long ago they learned that if they came together they were stronger. So the royal families of each duchy came up with a plan.  They decided they needed a King, someone who could be ruler of all three lands.  No one royal house was greater than the other and none of them wanted to go to war with each other, so the three dukes entered into a tournament instead.  The winner became the King and the remaining two dukes would be his Chamberlain and his Exchequer. 

The day to day running of their respective duchies fell to the duke’s heirs and other relatives.  In the interest of neutrality, the King had to forsake his home duchy and renounce all connections with anyone save immediate family if he was already married at the time he was crowned.

If the King was a bachelor then he was obliged to take a Queen within a year of his coronation to produce an heir for his duchy and possible succession.  By law all royals must wed royal but he could choose from any in the realm.  Naturally the Dukes wanted the King to wed from their families to increase their prestige and power so a tournament of a different sort was usually arranged.  The winner would be the one who caught the King’s eye and his hand in marriage.

Any children born of the first royal family were raised with the royal children of the other duchies so as to continue the bonds of friendship and mutuality into the next generation.  And when the time came to select a new King, the process would begin again.  Each duchy would present its Duke for the Kingship Tournament and the winner would take the crown.

This arrangement had suited these tiny duchies for over 300 years until the time came when the Duke of Arcadia bore no sons, only daughters.  He had no heir to enter the next tournament!  His people were horrified and an appeal went to the ailing King.  The High Council was convened and it was determined that the Duke could acknowledge the first born son of his mistress as heir.  The Duke of Arcadia’s extramarital affairs were no secret and for the sake of their realm it was agreed that some royal blood was better than none.

So, it came to pass that overnight young Peter was thrust into the Academy to be educated and trained to be duke along with the other royal children.  He was at a distinct disadvantage as the others had known one another for many years.  The others had had a childhood of the very best tutors and coaches.  Every latent talent and skill was explored and developed so that each house could boast of raising the best future leaders.  This was particularly true for the males because leadership of their tri-duchy alliance fell upon them. They also knew what “bastard” meant and were not shy about using the name to Peter’s face in the absence adults.

The ailing King rallied and for a few more years the kingdom was at rest.  The royal children grew and the oldest ones began to serve under their fathers, learning the art of statecraft.  Peter struggled.  He was clever and quick witted but he was also a dreamer and behind in all his studies. This frustrated Duke Arcadia mightily. Other frustrations for the Duke came from his Duchess and Mistress who naturally did not like each other, but because of the inheritance situation were forced together often.  It was therefore of no great surprise that the Duke suffered an early heart attack and Peter became Duke Arcadia as a young man.

He was a passable Duke due in large part to the sage help of his half sisters.  The eldest three were married by this time with able minded men of their own and some had started families.  There was pressure for him to take a Duchess and ensure the male line.  Unfortunately he did not like the royal snobs he’d met at school or later at formal functions.  He remembered their slights and they could not overlook his past origins – title or not. 

Naturally his eye then wandered to the commoners and in particular one pretty girl whose family ran a tavern in a village in Saxony.  But while he could flirt and woo her, he could not marry her.  Royals could only marry royals.  So Peter kept his true identity a secret and dreamt that he could follow his heart’s desire.  More than once he endured the Prentice ire as he refused to press his suit and propose, but his love could not spurn him completely and he was always able to charm his way back into her good graces.

The King’s ailment returned and this time he did not rally.  After the prescribed period of mourning the kingship tournament was arranged.  No one in the kingdom was surprised when the Duke of Arcadia lost his first round and his second.  He’d come to the party too late to be as skilled and experienced as the Dukes of Saxony and Smyth.   At the end of the week Duke Smyth, son of the late King, was crowned.  The Duke of Smyth was happy to remain in Gallifrey’s Captiol and leave the running of their duchy to his extended family. The Duke of Saxony returned to his duchy complaining of nepotism and unfair advantages.  The Duke of Arcadia returned to his duchy relieved and with a plan. 

He called his council together and told his sisters he had done his duty by entering the tournament and now wanted to abdicate.  He had fallen in love with a commoner and wanted to marry her.  His second eldest half sister had a son, Jack, who could be heir and would be a full blooded royal.  His oldest aunt and uncle could be his regents until he came of age and it should be a long time until a new tournament for the crown was needed.

Peter’s charm and persuasion had the dukedom quickly agreeing to his plan.  Papers were drawn up, witnessed and signed.  To ensure stability and remove any chance of civil divisions, Peter agreed to banishment and the first event he celebrated after saying goodbye to his homeland was his marriage to his true love, Jacqueline Suzette Prentice. 

Their honeymoon trip took them to the Capitol where they decided to make their home.  Now stripped of his royal title, Peter reclaimed his birth name and with his half sisters’ generous wedding gift, he set up shop: _Tyler’s Emporium: if you need it, we’ve got it_.  The eclectic nature of his inventory appealed to his creativity and allowed him to dabble in inventions from time to time.  His natural charm made him a terrific salesman and wife Jackie used the skills she’d learned from her father’s business to keep the books and shop in good order.

Seven months later little Rose Marion Tyler was born.

Six weeks later Pete Tyler died when a loaded cart rolled back and crushed him.


	2. Fifteen Years Later

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How a tavern maid became a beautician and why Rose drops out of school.  
> Rose meets the Doctor and some of his friends for the first time.

With Peter gone, the Tyler Emporium lost its major selling force.  Jackie was no sales person: she was too blunt and just couldn’t say _“Trust me on this”_ with the same fervor and conviction.  She also had no head for mechanicals so the many potential money making projects her husband had been tinkering with was just so much junk in her eyes.  She thanked the gods that they owned the shop free and clear and even in the few short months they’d had it, Pete had managed to set some funds aside.  For awhile Jackie could concentrate on her baby daughter and let the Emporium basically run itself.

But Jackie kept a sharp eye on the books and knew that things could not go on that way forever. In determination to provide for herself and baby, Jackie drew upon her own special training.  At the tavern/inn, often they’d had weary travellers (sometimes dignitaries) who needed to freshen up.  Jackie had found she had a deft hand with shears and razor and could give a customer a trim and a shave for a few coins.  Being the eldest, it had also fallen to her to make her siblings presentable and so she’d learned to style hair for her sisters as well.

Jackie opened up a beauty salon in the back of the Emporium.  Over time she built up a solid clientele of people who trusted her critical eye.  Many of the important ladies of Capitol would visit to have their hair trimmed, styled and tinted in ways that always flattered them.  Rose would sleep in a basket under the counter and later when she grew would amuse herself with bits and bobs from her late father’s store as her mother worked.

They didn’t have much, but they had each other and that was enough.

 

Like all children of Gallifrey, Rose went to Early School where she showed an aptitude for athletics and a quick mind for learning.  She was a popular child: sweet and eager to make friends.  She also had a temper which could quickly show itself whenever she encountered injustice. 

But while she graduated in good standing, her formal education was doomed to end.  Her mother needed her to work.  If she could run the Emporium and Jackie the Salon, they could pay the rising taxes and be reasonably comfortable in their apartment above the shop.  So Rose said goodbye to her childhood friends as they went off to Middle and Upper School and she became a businesswoman and future partner with her mother.  “Someday this will all be yours, Rose.  You’d better get a handle on it now while I’m still here to advise you.  Once the Emporium is doing better we can hire some help and I can train you to do hair, or we can hire workers for the Salon and I can retire.”  Peter Tyler wasn’t the only dreamer in the family.

 

Rose blew stray hairs from her face as she climbed down the ladder once again.  It was spring and time for spring cleaning.  Her mum wanted her to wash off the shelves and rearrange the Emporium’s random stock.  “Maybe if we can put a shine on some of this, someone will buy,” was Jackie’s idea.

Rose had been working for a few hours and her legs were tired of climbing up and down to rinse out her rags.  “I need to work smarter, not harder,” she muttered to herself.  After dragging the ladder ahead a few feet, she picked up the bucket of sudsy water and carefully climbed up.  She hooked the bucket over the top of the ladder as it leaned against the shelf.  “That will save me some steps,” she nodded proudly. She would be fifteen in a few weeks and she prided herself in her ingenuity.  She’d been told often enough that her father had been a clever inventor.  That’s where she must get her ideas from.

She pushed boxes aside and scrubbed at half of the shelf, wiping as she went.  She was just pushing the boxes back to do the other half when the bell over the shop door rang.

“If that’s Mrs. Pringle, send her on back!” called out her mum.

Rose looked down on Mrs Pringle with a smile.  “Good morning, Mrs Pringle.  How are your prize dahlias coming?”

“Ah, Rose!  What are you doing way up there child?  Yes, they are growing quick and strong – just like you are I’m sure.  They will be blooming before you know it.  You’ll have to come around and see.  Can I go straight through?”

“Yes, mum’s expecting you.”

Rose went back to work but when she finished cleaning the shelf surface, she let herself be distracted by the boxes and snuck a peek inside one.  “More bits and bobs,” she observed, “but nothing’s labelled.  How are we supposed to know what’s here if somebody asks?”  Rose began to set things out on the shelf.  Even if it was high up, at least it was out where a person could espy it.

The bell jingled again and in sauntered three youths.

“...oh, and you should have seen her face!  Whoa, what is this place?”

“Sign said _Tyler’s Emporium: you need it, we’ve got it_.”

“What would you need in here, Doc?”

“Opening up a junk yard?”

Rose cleared her throat, annoyed at the insult.  In her best professional manner she called down, “Hello, can I help you?”

The young men looked around and then up.  Rose took in their matching uniform sweaters and slacks.  All Academy students, but there the similarity ended.  The one who’d been talking when they entered had black hair that waved over his brow in a rakish way.  The one who’d been insulting had white blonde hair cut quite short, almost military.  The one who’d yet to speak had medium brown hair that rose up in rebellious spikes over the top of his head like a bad case of static electricity.

“Hello!” greeted the electrified one.  “Is the shop keeper around?”

“That’s me,” Rose replied importantly and started down the ladder.  There was a rush of young men coming to chivalrously help her and someone, or several (she couldn’t tell), knocked the ladder.  With a dismayed shout it toppled, she lost her footing, and she and her bucket fell on the lads below.

Strong arms arrested her fall moments before they were all doused in water.  She opened her eyes to discover her rescuer.  His blue eyes twinkled and his dimple deepened when he grinned at her and squeezed just a bit tighter.  “Hello.”

“Hello,” she replied a bit breathlessly.  She’d never been rescued before.  She’d never been held by a man before.  She’d never smelled a breath so sweet nor a cologne so spicy....

“Rose, you alright?  I heard a crash,” her mom called from the back hallway.

Rose quickly pushed away from Jack.  “I’m fine mum; just knocked something over but everything is okay.”  Her mum retreated back to look after Mrs. Pringle.

“Speak for yourself,” muttered the blond quietly as he squeezed water from his sweater. 

Rose frowned worriedly.  They were from the Academy.  That meant they were royals and had powerful and important parents.  It would never do to upset them; business was bad as it was.

The brown haired one ran his hands through his wet and flattened hair, ruffling it back into a semblance of its previous glory.  “You're fine, Harry,” he dismissed his friend.  “I’m just glad you’re alright...Rose, is it?  That was quite a tumble.  I’m sorry we made you fall.”

“I’m fine,” she assured him, straightening her skirts and smiling at his polite concern.  “What brings you to our shop?”

“I know what will make me return...” Jack drawled meaningfully.  Rose blushed as she tucked some wet hair behind her ear.  This full-on flirting was new to her.  “I’m Jack of Arcadia, but everyone calls me Captain Jack.”

“Captain?”

“I’m captain of the football team, the rugby team and the track team.” 

“In other words he likes to play the field,” snickered the blonde.

“You’re one to talk, Master.” Captain Jack poked him in the ribs.

“Master?”  Rose was getting confused.  Hadn’t he just been called Harry?  Did all Academy school boys have nicknames?

“It started out as a initiation joke with some plebes and it rather stuck,” shrugged the brown haired one.  He rolled his eyes as if to say it was a bit grandiose for his taste.

“So, Captain...Master...and do you have a nickname too?”  She asked him, seeming to recall that one of them had been referred to as Doc when they came in.

“He’s the Doctor.”

“He likes to fix things.”

“And he’s a brainiac.”

“I was wondering if you had parts for a wave compressor,” the Doctor asked her.

“Doc, are you serious?  You don’t have to complete Abecedary Wright’s assignment.  You’re the last one who needs the extra credit!” Captain Jack shook his head.  “This one,” jostling his friend’s shoulder, “is all about the books; a real nerd.”

“I’m not a nerd!” he protested then tugged on his ear.  “Well...yeah...maybe.  But there’s so much to learn, to see, to know!”

The Master rolled his eyes.  “Rose, you see before you the two extremes of the male spectrum:  the Doctor is all about learning and the Captain is all about playing – around.”

“Oi!” Captain Jack protested.  “This lovely lady might get the wrong impression about me when you say it that way!”

“No she won’t,” the other two chorused.

Rose giggled.  “So where are you on the spectrum, if your two friends are the extremes?”

“Oh, I’m all about winning,” the Master smiled.  He grabbed Rose’s hand and gallantly kissed the back of it.  “Harry of Saxony, at your service.”  He smirked at Captain Jack who looked chagrined that he hadn’t thought to kiss her hand first.

Rose tugged her hand away.  She felt flustered.  She had never had two potentially important boys flirting with her at once.  Half expectantly she turned to the third only to see his attention fixed on the shop’s shelves instead.

Abruptly brought back to reality, Rose tried to step back into her shopkeeper’s persona.  “A wave compressor, you say?  Do you know what model you’re working with?”  Rose had no clue what she was talking about.

“No model, no.  I’m building it from scratch,” the Doctor replied, his eyes flitting along the shelves.  “I really need a reducer wand...make that two...and a variable coil...something about so long...”  He showed her the size with his fingers.  “Why do you have this over here?”  He reached over to pick up a metal gear box that had been standing between a stack of woolen blankets and a pair of oil lamps.

“I’m spring cleaning,” Rose explained.  It wasn’t the reason things were not organized, but it sounded like a good excuse.

“I see,” he returned the gear box thoughtfully.  His quick eyes had already noted the chaotic disarray of the store’s inventory and the general air of disuse.  “On second thought...” he picked up the gear box again and tossed it to Captain Jack.  “I’ll have that after all.  Mind if I just poke around a bit, then?”  He didn’t wait for Rose’s reply and hurried down the aisle.

“Okay...” Rose called after him.  She was excited by the chance of a sale but also embarrassed at the state of her father’s shop.

The Captain handed her the gear box.  “And off he goes.  Sorry Rose but experience tell me he could be quite some time.  Harry and I have some place to be.  If he’s still back there when you want to close up for tonight, just turn out the lights; that will get his attention.”

“I heard that!”

“You were supposed to!”  Jack gave Rose an elaborate bow and then, not to be outdone by his friend, kissed the back of her hand.  “Rose, it has been a pleasure to meet you.”

The Master was already at the door which he held open.  “Oh, Captain, my Captain...” he sang out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to model Koeshi in appearance after the Simm's Master mainly because I wanted the three of them to have easy, physical differences in their appearance.


	3. The Doctor's Name

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose and the Doctor get better acquainted. His presence in the Emporium is discovered by two of the best gossips in Capitol.

As soon as they left, Rose grabbed the mop and sopped up the worst of the spilled water, but all the while she was thinking about the Doctor.  She didn’t think she should go back to cleaning with him still in the shop.  She was pretty sure that a good store clerk would offer her assistance, even if she didn’t know a thing about what he was looking for.  She found him kneeling over an open box, a pile of bits and bobs beside him.

“Doing okay?” she asked.

He looked up at her over the box and smiled sheepishly.  “I’m still looking for my original parts, but I’ve found a few other things along the way.”

“Oh well, that’s great,” Rose enthused.  This was turning into a sizable sale and mum would be impressed.

“Do you think you could find me a box for all this?”

“How much is left in the box you’re digging into?”

“Ah, good point.  Yes, yes this will be fine.” He up ended the box and a few wrenches and a ball of twine tumbled out.  His smile stretched into a grin.  “I guess I’m taking the whole lot.  You’ll want to write it up of course.”

“Of course.”  Rose knelt across from him and began to put things back in the box wondering how she was going to list and price some of the items.  Distracted, her hand chanced to brush his.  Both of them jumped at the contact and muttered a shy “sorry”.  _He must think me such a child – never having held hands with a boy before!_  Which she hadn’t; but that was purely beside the point.  When she made to pick up the box, he protested and scooped it up for her with a faint grunt.

“Allow me,” he insisted.

“Er, thank you.  You can put it on the counter over there, if you’d like.”  Rose wasn’t used to having people do things for her.  Sure, she already knew a flirtatious smile could usually get her the best prices at the market, and if she batted her lashes at the smithy’s apprentice sometimes she could even borrow a wheelbarrow, but it was still up to her to get things lugged back home.

She followed him up to the sales counter and scooted around to the far side to grab the receipt book.  “I’ll start writing this up for you,” she offered.

He nodded.  “I’m still looking, if that’s alright.”

“Oh, that’s fine.  We can just add to your list as you go.”  As he turned away, she asked “Who do I make this out to?”  She was embarrassed to admit she didn’t recognize him, but they hardly travelled in the same social circles. She couldn’t very well just put down “the Doctor”.  He wasn’t that famous surely.

“Oh!  You don’t know me....”  He had a funny look on his face.  “Sorry, I’m not used to that.  Make it out to John Smyth – that’s with a “y” not and “i”.  I’ll have someone from the Citadel collect everything before eventide.”

“Citadel...”  Rose chewed her lip.  He was _that_ Smythe; not only royalty but crown royalty, the only son of the King of Gallifrey!  “I’m so sorry.  I didn’t recognize you – “

Impulsively the Doctor’s hand covered hers.  “Don’t.  Why would you?  I’m just another Academy grad student.  It’s my father who’s king, not me.”

“Yes, but – “

“No buts,” he patted her hand awkwardly before stuffing both hands into his trouser pockets.  “I’m just the Doctor...like Jack and Harry are the Captain and the Master.  We might be born into privilege, but it’s up to us whether we get to keep hold of it.”

“And do you want to?”  Everyone knew about the tournament system that decided who would be King and who would remain Duke.  It was dangerous and difficult.  And the one who became King had to renounce his home and all extended family to be a neutral sovereign of all Gallifrey.  The power and prestige came at a price.

He tilted his head thoughtfully and rocked back on his heels.  “No one has ever asked me that before.  It’s just assumed from birth who you are and what you will do with your life.  Tell me: you’ve met the other two candidates should the throne become vacant – not that I wish my father any harm, mind you – but who would you want to be your next King?”

It was Rose’s turn to be thoughtful.  “Well, I suppose the proper thing to do would be to say that you would be my choice.”  She blushed and he decided he liked it.  “But I will not lie to you.  I don’t know any one of you well enough to form an opinion on the merits of your suitability to be King.”

“Bravo.  You gave me truth when you could have flattered instead.  That is a most precious gift indeed.”  He bowed slightly.  “Thank you, Miss Rose.”  He would have said something more but just then Mrs Pringle emerged from the salon followed closely by Rose’s mother.

“Now remember, keep out of the sun and don’t have your hair washed for at least a full day...” Jackie’s voice tapered off as the two older women recognized the young man at the counter.

Mrs. Pringle raised an approving brow at Jackie.  She bobbed a quick curtsy as she passed by and hurried on to go tell her friends that the patronage of a certain Emporium was definitely on the rise.

Jackie also curtsied and flashed Rose a questioning look.  Surely the girl knew who she was serving?  She hadn’t done anything stupid, had she? “M’lord,” she greeted John, looking at him from under her lashes.

The Doctor looked uncomfortable with the address, but chose to ignore it.  “You have a very impressive establishment here Mrs Tyler.  I’m quite surprised I did not know of it sooner.  Miss Rose has been helping me find some amazing things.”

Jackie smiled at the sizable box on the counter.  “Our mechanical inventory was collected by my late husband and I’m afraid we’ve not had much time to sort through it all.  He died quiet suddenly.”

“Did he?  I’m so sorry,” he glanced at Rose, but she was looking at the receipt book in her hands.  She had only been a baby when her father died and felt no real sorrow for a man she’d never known.  She did however feel deeply embarrassed.  The fact that the store was still in such disarray so many years later was an indictment against the Tyler women more than against the late Peter Tyler.

“Were you able to find all you desired?” Jackie purred.  She saw the interest in his eyes as he looked at Rose and she could see Rose’s blushed cheeks.

“No.” He chuckled to soften the reply.  “I’m afraid I got distracted from what I was specifically looking for.  I will have to return and spend more time combing through your inventory.”

“Oh yes, do come anytime!  We can open early or stay open later if you’d like.  Perhaps my daughter Rose can find what you wanted and you can stop ‘round to pick it up, or do you prefer treasure hunting?”  Suddenly Peter’s junk was treasure.

“Oh I love a good treasure hunt!  And if Miss Rose would be able to assist that would be most agreeable.  In my opinion, it’s better with two.”  Again his eyes fell on her golden head, but she didn’t look up.  “However, for now I must be on my way.  I have another appointment before the lunching hour that I must attend to.”

“Of course, m’lord.  Rose here will write up your purchases and you can collect them at your pleasure.”

“I leave for Smyth Duchy tomorrow, but I will send a man to collect the box tonight.  I will make sure you’re paid within the fortnight”

“You are too kind.  Perhaps you’d like to open an account and...”

“No, I won’t presume on your goodness with delayed payments.”  He looked pointedly at the neglected store.  “I will pay promptly and in full.”  _You need the cash_ went unsaid, but he accepted Rose’s grateful swift glance.

“Just as you please, of course,” Jackie curtsied.

“Good day, then.”

“Good day, good day.  We are only too happy to please, and don’t forget to come back for what you really want,” Jackie called after him.

Rose groaned inwardly.  It had been so easy to talk with him when they were alone, but as soon as her mother got involved she was struck dumb.  She hoped he understood her shyness and didn’t feel slighted that she didn’t wish him well on his way.

“Rose!  That was the Marquis of Smyth you had in here!  In here! In our shop!  Oh praise the –“  Jackie shrieked, finally noticing the fallen ladder, the bucket and the damp patch on the floor.  “Oh please, don’t tell me you dumped water on the King’s SON!”

 


	4. The Doctor Keeps His Promise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Doctor returns to Capitol and sees Rose that same day.

A fortnight to the day, the Doctor made good on his promise, going so far as to deliver the payment personally.  He was delighted to find Rose alone in the shop.  He’d thought of her often while he was away.  She didn’t fawn and simper like other girls tended to do, even after she discovered his identity.  She was intelligent and honest and knew her own mind.  And she was cute.

“I have a few minutes.  I’d like to keep looking for those parts, if I could.”

“Of course,” Rose agreed.  She was happy to see him again too.  And she was glad her mum had gone to visit a friend and would be gone most of the afternoon.  “I did some sorting.  Maybe you’ll find what you’re looking for easier.” 

While John was away in Smyth, Rose managed to finish cleaning.  She’d then started to separate the mechanical bits from the rest of the random inventory and put them in their own section.  She hadn’t opened all the boxes yet, but she felt pretty good about getting it all together in one place.  She’d been about to tackle the cooking pots and pans and display some of the bright copper ones in the newly cleaned windows when he had arrived.

“If you’re not too busy, do you want to help?”

“I’d love to, but I must confess I don’t know what I’m looking for; that is to say, I don’t know what your rods and spring look like.”

“It’s a coil not a spring, but never mind that.  I suspect you don’t know a lot about what you have for sale here.  How about I give you a bit of a tour through your own inventory?”

“Oh, would you?  Those boxes aren’t labeled and very few things have tags or prices on them.  I’m really pretty much at a loss.”

“I gathered that when I looked over the itemized list of my last purchase.  You know, _orange metal disc_ is not the same thing as writing _spacial dampener ring.”_ He smiled at her gently _._   “And your pricing was very...creative.”

“Oh dear, did I charge you too much?”

“Too much for some; too little for others.”

“I was guessing, you know.”

“You’re a good guesser, but really you should know the value of the things you have to sell.  You could easily be cheated.”

“I can’t afford to be cheated,” Rose admitted, surprising herself with her confession.

“No one should be cheated,” the Doctor declared, happy that Rose was open to his offer.  For some reason he really wanted to see the _Tyler Emporium_ do well.

“Where do you want to start?”

 

They spent the afternoon getting to know each other under the pretext of searching through the inventory.  No other customers came in to disturb them and for once Rose was happy that business was slow.  John went through a few boxes explaining what he found, what it could be used for and what its value was.  Rose eagerly listened to everything he said, making a few notes and trying to make sense of it all.  Sometimes John would get excited and talk too fast for her to follow, but usually he would catch himself, apologize and slow down.

Sometimes he would get Rose to try and deduce what an item was based on previous pieces.  He was quick to praise her when she made the right connections and patiently correct her if she was wrong.  He was a natural born teacher and Rose wanted to be his star pupil.

“So, I know your favourite colour and your favourite time of year...what’s your favourite food?” he asked as he sorted jars of fasteners.

“Chips.”

“Chips?”

“What? Did you think just because I’m a girl I’d say chocolate?”

“No...it’s just...”

“Boys make the mistake of thinking every girl is the same – flowers and chocolates and you’ll have their heart.”  Rose was feeling spunky.  The Doctor might be the Marquis of Smyth, but he genuinely seemed to be interested in who she was as a person.  “Every girl is different you know.”

“So I’m learning,” he replied wryly.  “What do you like so much about chips?”

“Oh, I don’t know.  Everything I guess.  I like the way the potato is all crispy on the outside but when you bite into it, the insides are all hot and soft.  It’s like eating two foods in one.  I like mine with salt and malt vinegar.  The tang balances out the starch.”  Rose watched John’s face as she was talking and the comprehension that flashed by had her blinking in surprise.  “What?  Don’t tell me you didn’t know what chips are?”

“Sorry.  I’ve eaten many potato dishes: boiled, baked, roasted, mashed, au gratin, hash brown, but never have I ever had chips. “Chips” sounds like something hard and brittle, like shale or slate perhaps, neither of which are very appetizing.”

Rose laughed, “You poor sheltered royal.  What do they teach you up there at the Academy anyway?  I thought everyone ate chips.”

“It appears that I have been most gravely deprived.”

“And what’s your favourite food?”

“Oh... I don’t want to say.”

“Why not?”

“Because you’ve probably never heard of it and you’ll think I’m just copying you because I’d never heard of chips.”

“No, I won’t.  Not if you’re telling me the truth.”

“I’ll always tell you the truth.”  His face was so solemn that Rose felt for a moment they weren’t just sharing trivial information anymore.

“So, what is it?” she pressed.

“Bananas.”

“Ba..na..nas?  You’re right, never heard of it.  You just made that up.”

“No, no I didn’t!”  He went on to rave about the exotic yellow fruit, what it looked like, how it tasted, it’s nutritional value, and culinary flexibility.  “Bananas don’t grow in Gallifrey.  Father gets them from a trader.”

“Ha!  That’s cheating!”

“How is that cheating?” He pretended to bluster.  “You asked what food was my favourite; you didn’t say it had to be local!”

 

The climax of their time together was the discovery of the variable coil he wanted.  It looked nothing like the spring Rose had pictured in her head.  This was a flat coil of bronze that reminded Rose of the swirls of cinnamon in a cinnamon bun.  She was hungry.

John frowned at the sun’s low position in the western sky.  “Look at the time.  I’m supposed to meet my mother for tea.  Something about a graduation party she is planning for us.”  He sighed disappointedly.  “Can I come back sometime?  There are still a few boxes to go through.”

“To find your rods.”

“And to continue your education, Miss Rose.  In the meantime, do study.  There will be a test at the end of the lesson.”  He tapped the end of her nose with a long finger.

Rose giggled, but then wondered at the serious expression in his chocolate eyes.  He was joking, wasn’t he?

“I had a really good time this afternoon,” he said softly.

“I did too,” Rose confessed.  She’d never considered that sitting on a bench looking at random strange metal parts could be a good time.  Apparently it was the company that counted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted this scene to be a date without being a date. Because royals don't date commoners in this AU and our lambs are so innoscent.


	5. A Chance Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow Rose turns fifteen. Today she encounters someone unexpectedly and Jackie gives some wise advice, but is it already too late?

Later that month Rose made an extra trip to market.  She loaded a hand basket with a few special spices, a wedge of her favourite cheese and a small cured ham. On impulse she added a handful of bright posies.  Business was increasing at the Emporium and tomorrow she turned fifteen.  They had two reasons to celebrate and she was going to ask her mum to bake a spice cake as a special treat.

She lingered longer in the stalls than she should have and Rose needed to hurry back to the shop before her mum’s first salon appointment.  She decided to take a short cut through the seedier part of town.  It was early morning, the sun shone bright and Rose felt safe enough.

As she turned a corner in the winding street, she felt a hand cup her elbow and another tug on her basket.  Wasting no words, she slammed her boot down hard on her assailant’s instep and when he released her elbow with a yelp, she drove that hard into his solar plexus.

“Rose!” was the hoarse gasp.

Only then did she turn to look at who had accosted her.  It was Harry, now bent over double and holding his stomach.

“OH!  I didn’t realize... you shouldn’t sneak up on a person like that!”

“And you shouldn’t be going around unescorted in this part of town.  What are you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same thing.”  Rose looked behind him at the questionable tavern he seemed to have just left.  It was a bit early in the day to be drinking...unless he’d been there all night...

Harry caught her gaze.  His eyes were clear and his voice steady.  Not drunk then.  “Bit of a business meeting.  The early bird gets the worm, you know.”

Rose wondered what kind of business meeting he could have in a place like that and what kind of people would need to meet there.  She kept her questions to herself though.  It certainly wasn’t her place to be challenging him.  “I’m running late so I’m taking a shortcut.  I don’t do it often, but I’ve never had any trouble.”  _Nothing she couldn’t handle anyway._

“I see you can defend yourself from an unsuspecting friend at least.”  He ran a hand over his flat stomach.  “But still, a pretty little bird like you shouldn’t come around here.  Allow me,” he took her basket and crooked his arm invitingly.

Rose demurely slid her hand into his arm and let him lead her down the street.

“Something smells wonderful.  What do you have in here?”

“Some spices and a little ham.”

“Ham!  Business must be good then,” he smiled at her. “I know the Doctor’s been buying more of your gadgets and parts, and where the King’s son frequents others are sure to follow.”

Rose tried to catch the meaning behind his words.  On the surface Harry was pleasant and almost jovial, but there seemed to be a bite of bitterness as well.

“Yes, thank you, business has been picking up lately and John’s patronage has been a great help.”

Harry noted that Rose on a first name basis with his friend. “So this is for a bit of celebration?”

“For mum and me, yes.  Actually, tomorrow is my birthday.  I’ll be fifteen.”

“All of fifteen!  My, my and I’m sure you have a cart load of suitors anxious to make you their bride.”  It was a quirk of Gallifrey society that girls were considered of age at fifteen while men did not come of age until twenty-one.  It was quite common for older men to marry younger women.

Rose laughed lightly and shook her head.  “No.  I’m too busy working to entertain young men.  Besides, all my friends are still away in school.”  Her life kept her busy, but she still missed her friends.

“Not all your friends, surely; you and I are friends, are we not?”  Harry flexed his arm, pressing her hand closer to his side.

Rose flushed at the subtle intimacy.  “I... I suppose so.  Yes, thank you m’lord.”

“Not m’lord; simply Harry, or the Master if you’d rather.  When you say ‘m’lord’, I automatically think of my esteemed father. I’m not that much older than you, only about four years or so.”

By now they had reached the shop and Rose thanked Harry for the company.  He gave her back her basket and then taking her hand from his arm, bent over it and brushed his lips over her knuckles.  She felt a faint tingle of the beginnings of a pale mustache.  He looked up at her over her extended hand and winked.  “I shall be the first to say it:  Happy Birthday, m’lady.”

Rose giggled happily.  “I’m not a lady, just a common shop keeper.”

Harry shook his head slowly.  “There’s nothing common about you, Rose Tyler.”  Something flickered in his pale blue eyes which left Rose uncomfortable with his compliment.  He released her hand and bowed smartly.  “I must hurry now myself.  It’s the last day of classes!”  He spun on his heel and quickly disappeared.

Bemused, Rose pushed open the shop door.

“There you are!  I only have time for a quick cuppa before Madam Greene will be here for her trim and set.  Who was that at the door with you just now?  It didn’t look like His Grace.”

“It wasn’t.  Just...just someone I know who walked me partway home.”

“Who, Rose?”  Her evasion made her mother curious.

“Harry of Saxony.  He came in the shop with John that first day.”

“Harry...you mean _Harold_ of Saxony?  Why, he’s the Duke’s eldest son!  Another royal...”  Jackie frowned at her daughter.  On the one hand she was very pleased to have the patronage of some influential royals.  On the other hand she didn’t want her daughter to start getting airs and graces.  There was no future there.  “Have you met any more of John’s friends?”

Rose regretted not telling her mum the full story the day they all came to the store.  She really just wanted some time to herself now to think about Harry and his subtle flirting, and to ponder what he might have been doing at that tavern.  “Well, actually there were three of them: John, Harry er Harold, and Jack...of Arcadia.”

Jackie’s carefully shaped eyebrows disappeared under her blond fringe.  “Three young royal men have the acquaintance of my daughter!  And not must any young royals, oh no!  Only the three dukal heirs and the potential next King of Gallifrey!”

“Mum...”

“No, you listen carefully to me, Rose Tyler.  You’re going to be a young woman tomorrow and life is going to start changing to be sure.  You’d be wise to remember royals only marry royals.  It’s the law.  John’s a nice enough bloke and lord knows he’s been a true blessing for our Emporium, buying stuff and teaching you what’s what with your father’s old junk.  But that’s where it ends, you hear me?  You keep your head on straight and your heart locked up tight.  I don’t care how nice and friendly these lads are to you.  I’ll not have my only child become a dead-end mistress or worse yet, a single mother!”

Rose ran into her mum’s arms and hugged her tight.  “I know, mum, I know.  I know who I am.”  She gave her an extra squeeze.  “Maybe someday a nice young commoner will notice me and we’ll fall in love.  Or...maybe it’ll be you...you’re young enough to fall in love again.”

Jackie snorted and wiped away her tears.  “You’re sweet to say that, luv, but I’ve already had the love of my life.  I shan’t love another.”

“Not even the grocer up on the hill?  The one who saves us the best fall apples every year?”

“Oh now,” it was Jackie’s turn to blush.  “Fred’s nice alright.  And he’s fun to go around with to the festivals and dances, but no... he’s no Pete, sweetheart.”

_And no nice young commoner will ever be John either._   Rose mentally shook herself and buried that idea with the others that were beginning to fill up her wistful heart.


	6. Schemes and Dreams

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The curtain is pulled aside and we are introduced to many (and some familiar) characters who are a direct influence upon Rose and the Doctor.

It was June and the next generation of Dukes and Duchesses were graduating from the Academy.  Parents and regents were busy exchanging letters and making important plans for their future.

The young men would return to their duchies to complete their formal training in the statecraft of running their holdings.  While they still had to wait until they were twenty-one to assume their full rights and responsibilities, they were old enough to be seriously courting and strategically marrying.  Everyone knew that it behooved a Duke to marry before he might become King. 

The political complexities of Gallifrey’s royal houses took a lifetime to grasp, and so most unions were arranged by those deemed older and wiser than the young people involved.  A love match was reserved for nursery fairy tales.  Obligation and duty were the concepts drummed into every royal.  Their lives were not their own; they were all tools for the betterment of their realms and for the greater good of Gallifery.

Each duchy had its own scheme and dream for its young people:

 **Smyth** was ruled by the King’s brother, Wilfred, until John would reach the age of majority.  Wilfred had been John’s surrogate father as his parents, by convention and often necessity, had all but orphaned him for the sake of their sovereign duties.  Wilfred loved John as the son he’d never had and only wanted John to be truly happy.  Whether he thought it wise or not, he had to bow to the King’s and Queen’s pick for a bride, but he would personally do everything he could to make it the best situation and eventually a happy match.

The King favoured River, Jack’s older cousin, for his son.  River’s assertive personality and natural understanding of global military and politics would be a good balance to his son’s bookish, more pacifistic tendencies.  Naturally the King hoped that John would be able to succeed him to the throne and River had the regal qualities needed to be a helpful Queen.

The Queen preferred Clara, a third cousin once removed, for her only son.  Clara was cheery and witty and could make John laugh – something that her mother’s heart longed to see happen more often for her serious son.

John wanted what he believed he could never have.  He kept his secret to himself and quietly suffered his lovelorn status.

 

 **Arcadia** was ruled by River’s parents until Jack came turned twenty-one.  As the eldest child of the Regents, she’d been exposed to more of the political and business workings of the country than most young ladies.  While she had had many suitors (and a few lovers) since she’d come of age two years ago, she had her eye and heart firmly fixed on John of Smyth.

She admired his great intelligence and, unlike his distant parents, had sometimes glimpsed a deeper passionate side that she found extremely attractive.  Growing up so close together, River had learned early on how to push John’s hidden buttons and she loved to wind him up.  She also found the fact that he was mildly intimidated by her very amusing.  She would’t mind being the dominate partner in this arrangement.

Jack wanted John to marry River’s sister, Donna.  He saw firsthand the deep bond of friendship which John and Donna already enjoyed.  They were good for each other in so many ways that Jack imagined would make for a satisfyingly stable marriage.  They would be solid partners and that was what a marriage was all about, wasn’t it?  In Jack’s opinion, it was a better pairing than John and River; River would just simply swallow him whole and not just in a carnal sense. 

The problem with Jack’s idea was that both Donna and John felt squeamish at the slightest suggestion of them being more than platonic best mates.  Of course, Donna’s throwing up right after kissing John on a dare one drunken Christmas Eve didn’t exactly seal the deal either.

As for himself, Jack wasn’t interested in marriage. He’d met a lot of girls/women, but he hadn’t found the One.  He was determined to hold out for the fairy tale and find true love.  It wasn’t that he was a romantic fool; it was just that the searching part was too much fun!

The Regents quietly despaired of ever getting the heir of Arcadia to settle down and be monogamous long enough to marry.  Instead, they pinned their hopes on their daughters to secure a match with the future Duke of Smyth and the future Duke of Saxony respectively.  Then their sons would be heirs if/when Jack failed to do his matrimonial duty.

 

 **Saxony** had great plans for his heir.  The Duke felt confident Harold would be the next king.  Neither Lothario Jack Arcadia nor Book Worm John Smyth presented any real challenge for his son in terms of leadership.  Just like in horses and dogs, careful breeding and ruthless training were what made the superior specimen.

The Duke was fanatical about keeping the house blood lines pure.  He believed in siring many children and having dozens of cousins, seconds and thirds, from which to create suitable matches.  Secretly he was also not against incest if it meant protecting the line.  He’d proven his point with his sister and, if Harold should fail him, he was prepared to trot out not one but two other male heirs.

Year ago he’d been deeply offended at the circumstances surrounding Arcadia’s bastard heir and had secretly despised the old King for allowing such “pollution”.  He’d made it his personal campaign to make Peter’s time at the Academy hell.  He’d done everything possible to erode the young man’s confidence and sabotage any potential successes.  It had been a simple thing to defeat him in the Kingship Tournament – blood will out, after all.  He’d also been the mastermind behind planting the idea of abdication and pushing the nubile tavern maid into Peter’s lonely arms and heart.

When he learned that they’d actually had the audacity to have a child (Jackie’s early pregnancy had been a strict secret), he realized it was only by the grace of God that it had been a daughter and not a son... a son that would have held a tenuous claim to royal blood and the seat of Arcadia!  The duke had tugged on some mercenary connections and the “accident” was arranged.  There would be no more bastard pretenders threatening the way things were supposed to be.

In terms of succession the Duke had paraded a long list of Saxony girls as potential matches, in particular Lady Christina De Souza, but Harold spurned them all and there had been any number of arguments.  The relationship between father and son had become strained enough that Harold refused to come home last Christmas and had stayed instead with his friend John’s family in the Citadel.  The Duke had rationalized the wisdom of this choice by congratulating Harold on keeping his friends close and his enemies closer.

If he must look outside his borders for his son’s future wife (and Queen), the Duke reluctantly decided River of Arcadia would make Harold a sterling match.  He’d watched her in action during the last Summer Games captaining the woman’s rugby team.  She was tough, ruthless and a born leader. 

He would have preferred some Smyth blood, but the King only had the one offspring and most of the distant female cousins were too young to be more than a future betrothed.  Perhaps the young Martha as she was certainly clever, but he didn’t want to wait another year. The Duke wanted grandsons and the family line secured long before the present King died and a new one had to take his place.

He also wanted Harold to destroy Rose Tyler.  Her life was an irritating reminder to him of the corrupt Arcadian bloodline.  Over the years he’d toyed with the idea of just having her killed, but the enjoyment of such an act would have been too brief.  If his son could seduce her and bind her to him as his mistress, she need never know her heritage and the Duke would get a final perverse revenge on her upstart bastard father.  He’d been impressed when Harold related how he had manipulated his friends into “finding” the Tyler Emporium and thus striking up an acquaintance with the young shopkeeper.   Planning ahead he had also arranged that any pregnancies resulting from this dalliance would be speedily dispatched...quietly or otherwise.  Tylers were very jeopardy friendly and this particular branch would end here.

Harry wasn’t averse to marrying River, she was handsome and spirited enough to be interesting for the long term.  He also found the idea of stealing her away from John quite exciting.  But what he found even more exciting was the idea of taking the fair and innocent Rose for his own pleasure, especially after he’d deduced John’s personal interest in her.  Was it obvious he hated the Smyth heir?  It was a good thing he was a consummate actor.  He hadn’t chosen the nickname “the Master” for nothing...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry if I abuse any of your favourite DW characters and companions in my AU. I tried to latch on to some of the surface traits of each, but for purposes of plot the deck is thoroughly shuffled and some of them just won't come out on top in this story.


	7. The Party and the Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The young people are not happy about the adult's matchmaking. Jack proposes a plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I am a day late posting! My computer crashed and had to be repaired. RL can be such an inconvenience at times...

The graduation celebration party was a thinly disguised meat market, John decided.  Nobody really seemed to care that he’d received nine awards and that the High Council had been keenly interested in his last project for future R&D in fourth dimensional computation.  He cast a longing eye at the lavish buffet table, but stayed resolutely in his corner behind the potted plant.  He knew he was sulking, but he was also trying to avoid a certain curly haired dynamo.

“There you are,” River pounced.  She sat on the arm of his chair and leaned over so he had a close-up view of her heavy diamond and sapphire necklace and the substantial cleavage beneath it.  Her breath smelled faintly of cherries and he could tell by her blown pupils that she’d been drinking too much.  “Why did you disappear?  I have you down for the next three dances.”  She flicked his nose with her dance card.  “We mustn’t upset mumsy and daddy...”

The adults had filled the dance cards of all the young people with the finesse of a massive treaty negotiation.  Preferred couples were effectively paired off.  Alliances were made.  Battle lines were drawn.

John had been awarded to River, Harry to Donna and Jack to Clara.  Much of the rest of the graduating class had been similarly coupled up, but it was the dukal heirs had held everyone’s greatest interest. If all the smug smiles and whispers behind gloved hands meant anything their fates were all but sealed.  He was wearing the tuxedo of doom.

“...of course, if you don’t want to dance for some reason, I’ll be happy sit them out...with you.”  Her dance card disappeared between her breasts and she slid deliberately off the chair’s arm and into his lap.

John would have jumped at the sudden invasion of his personal space, but he was weighted down.  He didn’t know where to look, or where to put his hands.  River’s perfume was starting to give him a headache.  He cleared his throat nervously.  “Yes, well perhaps we should dance after all.  People are expecting it.”

“Oh darling, they are expecting much more than that,” she wriggled her hips and gave him a slow, smouldering smile as she knew John’s youthful male body couldn’t help but respond to her deliberate provocation.

This time John did jump, pushing River off his lap but catching her before she fell in a heap of beaded silk.  “I’m sorry, River.  I’m not good company tonight.”  He gently pushed her back into his empty seat and hurried away.  He had to get out of here.  The noise and the crowd, the simpering and posturing, made him ill.

His long legs carried out of the ballroom unhindered and he headed for his favourite mediation spot – a perch on the stone wall in the south garden.  With practiced ease he vaulted up on the stone and swung his legs over the edge.  From his vantage point he could see the river glinting silver in the moonlight and the dots of light in the town below.

Soon there was a rustle in the grass and a scrabbling on store.

“Oi, give a girl a hand, you lump.”  Donna was having trouble climbing in her long gown.  John leant a hand and soon she was sitting next to him, looking down at the river.  With a big sigh she leaned her head on his shoulder.  “It is completely ghastly in there.”

“Yeah.”

“Me, with Harry Saxon...can you imagine?  I know he’s an old friend of yours, but honestly he’s as slippery as fish oil.  He got all handsy on the dance floor and I had to set him straight more than once.  I finally sent him for punch and gave him the slip.”

“I’m sorry Donna.”  He knew she fancied a lesser noble she’d met last summer volunteering at the library, but her parents wanted a more advantageous match and separated the two as soon as they were found out.

“And you with River...she’s always set her cap for you, hasn’t she?  I don’t think it’s a great match.  She’s big-sister pushy and she bullies you.”

“She’s great in her own way, but she’s not great for me.”

They sat quietly for a few minutes then Donna said what they were both thinking.  “This is the end.  After tonight everything changes.”

“Yeah.”

“Hey you two, I thought I’d find you hiding out here.”  Jack joined them on the wall, drumming his heels against the stone.  “River’s pretty ticked at you for ditching her, and Harry none too happy about you following after John either.”

“Tough,” Donna spat. 

“Look, our families are going to be drawing up contracts and exchanging dowries if you don’t do something fast,” Jack warned them. “How are you going to fix this, Doc?”

John ran a frustrated hand through his hair.  “I don’t know.  I mean I know what’s expected of me, of us, but it’s not right.  It’s just not right.”  He stared up at the stars but all he could see was a tongue-touched smile and glowing whiskey coloured eyes.  A strangled groan came from deep in his soul.

 

River and Harry cut a wide swath on the dance floor doing the tango.  Their anger was magnetic, drawing them to each other.  To their mutual surprise the connection was electric.

Observers began redrawing the predicted roster of future couples.  The King was disappointed as he’d wanted River for John, but the Queen was still hopeful for her pick.  Jack had disappeared and Clara was off commiserating with friends.  The night was relatively young.

 

“We need to buy ourselves some time.”

“I have an idea,” offered Jack.  “You don’t like the partners picked for you, right?”

“Right,” they chorused.

“So then...how about the two of you as a couple?”

John and Donna share a disgusted look.  “No!” they said in unison.

“Hey, hear me out!  It can be a fake relationship.  If you two would just act like you’re a couple, then the other’s will have to back off.  You know each other so well already, it should be easy.”

“Weeell, it might work...” John was thoughtful.

“Fake, you say?” queried Donna cautiously.

“Phoney baloney!”  Jack hid his crossed fingers behind his back.  _If they could just see how great they were together..._

Rose leaned out her bedroom window.  Above and to the left was the Academy campus.  Today John’s class graduated.  Tonight they were all celebrating at the Graduation Gala.  She sighed pensively.  A storm was coming; everything was about to change.

The graduates would be leaving Capitol for life in their home duchies.  There would be no more visits to the Tyler Emporium and to one young shopkeeper.  For all intents and purposes their brief friendship was over.

The first boom of fireworks effectively downed out Rose’s sob.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can totally imagine River Song and the Master doing a blazing hot version of the tango. Talk about a power couple!!!


	8. Heartbreak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title says it all: gossip and intrigue hurt.

Jack was having serious second thoughts.  It had only been a couple of hours and already he could see the strain his plan was putting on his friends.  Donna’s smile looked like a tortured grimace.  John’s eyes looked slightly strained and his freckles were prominent against his pasty skin.

When they’d come in from the garden arm in arm, River had left in a stormy cloud of righteous indignation.  Harry had stuck around acting as if he didn’t care one way or the other that his intended had chosen John over him.  Indeed he seemed to circling the room more like a happy shark than a shunned guppy.  Then Jack saw the icy glare he’d burned into the back of John’s head as the newly formed “couple” took to the dance floor.  A shiver of foreboding slid down his spine.  Having a Saxon as an enemy was never a healthy idea.

Jack danced with Clara, but she could tell his mind was elsewhere.  She deliberately stepped on his toes to get his attention.   “What’s wrong?” she asked him.  “You used to like to dance with me.”

“I do.  It’s just... there’s a lot going on tonight and...I’m sorry Clara.  I need to talk to John.”

“Right now?”  She couldn’t hide the disappointment in her voice.  She really liked the rake everyone called the Captain.

“Yeah, right now.” Jack steered her over to intercept his friends.  “Let’s get our partners some refreshments,” he suggested to John.

Instead to heading straight to the punch bowl, Jack steered John back behind the potted plant he’d favoured earlier.  “You two are not doing a very convincing job.  I know the truth, but I think Harry can see it too and if he can, what about our parents?  Geesh Doc, you’re friends, can’t you be... I don’t know, more friendly?”

John hung his head.  “I’m trying, I really am, but....  Jack don’t you remember last summer Donna volunteered at the library and fell for Lee McAvoy?”

Jack shrugged.  “I thought that was just a summer fling.  They don’t see each other anymore.”

“That’s because her parents broke them up.  Donna is still crazy about him and I think he’s the same for her.”

“So you feel guilty because you’re making like you’re an item and Lee’s going to get his heart broken for no reason?”

“That’s part of it.”

“You have someone too, don’t you?  Is it that shop girl?  She was really pretty.”

“Rose.  Yes.”

“But John, she’s a shop girl.  You can’t...” Jack’s eyes widened as the revelation hit him.  “Oh no! Don’t tell me you’ve said or done...”

“What?  No, I never...I couldn’t...I can’t.  She knows that; but it doesn’t change how I feel about her, and now she’s going to hear that Donna and I...” 

The Captain slung an arm over his burdened friend’s slumped shoulders.  “Okay.  This is what we’re going to do...”

 

 “My Mary was a server last night at the big party,” Mrs Hunter told Mrs Claiborne as they poured over the new shipment of fabric.  “The way she described it, it was all very hoity-toity for a room full of teenagers.” 

“Yes, but they are royal teenagers and the King’s own son graduated this year, didn’t he?”

“That he did.  Mary said that Evans – that’s the headmaster’s butler – said that he won an arm load of awards too.  He’s ever so clever they say; cleverer than his dad, but you didn’t hear that from me.  Oh, and some invention of his was being looked at by High Council or something!  Good for the Academy, I suppose.”  Mrs Hunter then went on to describe all the fantastic foods prepared for the event. 

Rose tried very hard not to eavesdrop but it was difficult with them just on the other side of shelves, and she was eager to learn everything about John’s big night she could.  She felt a swell of pride at his accomplishments. He really was impressively clever. She grinned to herself when the ladies exclaimed over some dish called a Bananas Foster.  Oh, John must have enjoyed that!  She wondered what a Bananas Foster was really like... what made up the “Foster” part, or was that the chef who invented it...

“Well you can’t really blame the parents too much.  It’s one of the rare times everyone who’s anyone is all together. Naturally they want to make good matches for their houses and what better time than when they’ve finished school and are about to enter the real world?  The girls are all of age and the boys will come into their own in just a couple of years.  It’s best to get things arranged now before they get out rubbing elbow with us commoners.” 

Mrs Hunter chuckled.  “No, that wouldn’t do, would it?  Well Mary said there was some excitement with the matchmaking business.  Apparently quite a few of the young people didn’t agree with their parent’s choices and mixed up their dance cards, if you catch my drift.”

“Oh, I do, I do!”

“Mary said one couple was so scandalous on the dance floor that all the staff snuck out and had a peek.  They danced something called a tango?  Do you know it?”

“Can’t say that I do.  Must be one of those modern things, or something only the upper class knows about.”

“Well I guess it’s quite suggestive.”

Rose held her breath, wondering who the dancers were.

“Who was it?”

“Apparently it was the Marquis of Saxony and the Arcadian River Song.”  Rose let out a sigh.

“I’ve heard about her.  She’s quite the worldly woman and barely seventeen.”

“Judith, what do you think of this?”

“I like the one with the yellow flowers better.”

“Really? Oh I suppose you’re right.”

Rose was about to leave her eavesdropping post when Mrs. Hunter struck a knife through her heart.

“The biggest news of the night though was unveiling the courtship of the Marquis of Symth and Donna of Arcadia.”

“Oh, they’ve been friends for years.  I always thought they were more like brother and sister.”

“Well I guess the friendship has blossomed into romance.  Mary said they disappeared into the garden partway through the evening and were gone for the longest time.  When they did reappear, they were arm in arm, all lovey-dovey.  River, who was originally paired with Smyth, left in a big huff having been bested by her baby sister for the most eligible bachelor in Gallifrey.”

The ladies tittered.

Rose covered her mouth with her hands lest her gasp be overheard.  _John!_   Hot tears threatened to spill but she blinked them back furiously.  How would she ever explain her upset to her customers? 

Hastily Rose left the aisle, cursing her curiosity, and striving to get her emotions under control.  Her daft Doctor who’d spent hours upon hours talking to her about his fantastical ideas and dreams, who’d tirelessly taught her about a whole new world and who’d singlehandedly saved their store from ruin.  That man, that wonderful man was going to marry another!

But soon the icy flood of reality swept away the last of her secret childish dreams.  Oh course John was going to marry.  He was heir to Smyth.  It was his duty.  School was over and now he had to step into his future.  He needed a wife, a mother for his children...and she had to be royal.

By the time the lady’s had made their shopping selections, Rose was able to measure and cut their desired lengths.  Numbly she wrapped the fabrics in paper and string, wrote up the bill and made change on the money they handed her.

Then she repeated the procedure with Mr. Blackwell who bought a length of rope.  Then Mrs Andrews bought a set of dish towels and a mixing bowl, chattering on about how her youngest had tried to make pancakes and the dog had knocked the stool and everything had crashed to the floor.

Thankfully the store was busy and she could stay occupied serving customers, but the constant cheery ring of the bell over the door was beginning to give her a headache to match her heartache.  To her credit, her thin veneer of resolve only threatened to crack once: when a customer handed her a pump valve and a gearbox.

Finally there was a lull in the shoppers.  Jackie was busy in the back and Rose was restless.  She felt that if she could just keep moving she could keep ahead of the disaster that was looming over her personal life.  She grabbed up the broom from the corner and decided the sidewalk needed a good stiff sweeping.

She attacked the planks with gusto, raising a cloud of dust and sweat on her brow.

“Excuse me. I have a message for Miss Rose Tyler.”

Rose paused and wiped the sweat (not tears she told herself) from her eyes and peered at a youth in formal livery.  “I’m Miss Tyler,” she replied.

He stepped up on the sidewalk and handed her a white envelope.  The paper felt thick and rich to her finger tips.

“Who’s this from?”

“I do not know, but I serve the Marquis of Arcadia, Miss.”

_Jack._   Rose patted the pockets of her skirt for a coin to tip him, but she had none.

He shook his head with a smile.  One did not tip a royal house servant.  “No need Miss.  Have a nice day.”

“Thank you... same to you.”

Rose slid the envelope into her pocket and retreated inside the store.  Slowly she stood the broom back in its corner and made her way to her stool behind the counter.  The envelope burned in its hiding place but she was afraid to open it.  What would Jack have to say to her?  What she’d already learned?  Probably and she just couldn’t bear to see the ugly truth in black and white now.  No, it would be best to wait and read it tonight after her mum had gone to sleep and her pillow could muffle her sorrow.

 

The following hours were agony for Rose.  Her mum noticed her change in mood from the morning but wisely said nothing.  She too had heard all about the doings at the Academy party.  Perhaps one of her customers had relayed the gossip to Rose not knowing what it would mean to her.   It was inevitable to be sure, but that didn’t mean that she didn’t sympathize with her daughter.

Rose didn’t want to give her mum the chance to say “Didn’t I warn you?  I told you so.”  It hurt too much.  She also didn’t think she could stand her pity, so she went about her evening chores as if nothing was wrong.   They worked around each other with false cheer.

Finally it was time to retire and Rose endured Jackie’s overly long hug before going to her room and shutting the door.  She perched on the edge of her bed and with trembling fingers opened Jack’s message.

Inside was a sheet of paper wrapped around a second envelope.

_Rose, I’m sending this to you for our mutual friend the Doctor.  For reasons I’m sure you will understand, he cannot contact you directly but he wanted to speak to you.  I don’t know the contents of his letter, but I can guess.  I truly wish things could be different._

_Love, your friend, Captain Jack._

 

Rose breathed deeply willing her nerves to settle.  _At least he was saying good bye, that’s something._   Carefully she opened the second envelope.

_Rose.  I wish I could write My Dearest Rose, but I cannot have that privilege. That is reserved for the one life I can never have.  Instead I pray that this letter reaches you before you hear the news of last night._

_You may hear that I and Donna are courting – don’t believe it!  This is all a ruse invented by the Captain to keep us from being pushed into arrangements that our hearts will not allow us to accept.  Donna is in love with a noble her family refuses to accept.  I was being pushed to accept her sister River.  The plan is to pretend to be a couple until such time as the other parties find someone else.  Then Donna will free to follow her heart and I will have helped my childhood friend to happiness._

_I wish that I could help myself the same way, but for my complete happiness there is a barrier which I do not know how to break through._

_We leave for Smyth today and I shall be there for the unforeseeable future. If you receive this before sundown, and can find it in your heart to see me one more time, come to the departure station and stand under the silver tree next to the fountain.  I will look for you.  I may not be able to come to you, but I will see your face and that must be enough._

_Yours always,_

_John._

 

Rose clutched the note to her chest.  Sundown was long past and she had missed him!  Oh, if only she’d read this earlier...but it was too late now. Impatiently she wiped at her tears.  “I’m sorry John, please, please, please forgive me...and have a...have a fantastic life.”


	9. Old Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> School's out and Rose's friends are back in town, ready to pick up their friendship where they left off. Rose is caught in the dysphoria of massive personal change and minimal external change.

The sun still rose the next morning just as it always did.  Rose went through her morning routine in a daze, surprised that the floor still held her weight, that her clothes still fit her body, and that the fourth from the top stair still creaked going down.

She greeted her mother in her usual voice and thought it amazing that her toast and jam felt and tasted the same in her mouth.  _Life still goes on_ she realized as she sipped her cup of tea.  Her mum was talking, telling her of her schedule for the day and Rose nodded appropriately though she didn’t hear a thing.

The day passed in a blur of repetitive tasks.  When her mum remarked that night that she looked a bit peaked, she claimed a headache and went to her room.

The next day was the same as the first, and so was the day after that and the day after that until Rose found herself living a new “normal”.  In the moments when she dared to think about, it seemed almost fantastical that one boy, in just the span of a few months, could have knocked her so far off axis.  This was her world.  This was who she was.  Life in the Citadel or the Academy or anywhere else might as well be life in another universe. 

 

“Rose Tyler!”

“Well, look at you!  Miss us much?”

Rose looked up to see her two girl friends running into the shop.  Right.  It was the end of the month.  School was over for the summer.

“Keisha!  Shareen!”  Rose hurried around the counter to hug her friends.  “It’s so good to see you!”

“Oh, Rose there’s so much to tell you!  When can you get off?”

“Off?  I’m here ‘til closing.”

“All by yourself?  Wow, that’s impressive.”

“Well, mum still has her salon in the back, but yeah I pretty much run the Emporium.”  Rose said proudly.

“You’re the manager?  That’s amazing, but it’s also a drag.  We haven’t seen you in ages!”

“Yeah, you won’t believe all that’s been going on!” 

Rose could tell they were itching to give her all the school gossip and share their adventures.  She smiled neutrally and shrugged her shoulders.  The Emporium was her life now; she didn’t belong in their world.

“Okay, what time do you close?”

“We’re taking you out.”

“What?  Oh no.  How about you come ‘round and we stay in?  We can catch up in my room.”

“Stay in?  On the first night after school’s out?  You have got to be kidding me.”

“Absolutely not, Rose!  We have to celebrate and you need to come with us.”

“We’ve already made plans.  A whole bunch of us are going to the Chip ‘n Whistle.”

“There?  No, no I couldn’t possibly – “

“Rose Marion Tyler, don’t tell us you’ve never been?  And you’ve been fifteen for ages and ages!  You’re completely legal now.”

“How are you ever going to meet someone if you don’t go out?  I can’t believe you’d turn down the chance to go dancing.”

Both girls were staring at her, realizing that their friend had changed while they were away at school.  They exchanged a conspiring look: Rose needed an intervention before she transformed into an old maid!

For the next few minutes they argued with Rose then Jackie, hearing familiar voices came out to greet the girls.  To Rose’s shock her mum sided with her friends.  “Oh, go on, sweetheart.  Your friends have just come back and want to celebrate with you.  You work too hard.  You need to get out there,” Jackie insisted. 

Jackie was no fool.  She’d noticed the change in her daughter right after the Academy graduation and the gossip surrounding it.  She could put two and two together just fine.  The best way to get over a boy was to go out and find another one. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In my head, K & S are pretty much interchangable so I just let them speak in tandem without telling you who is who. I hope that wasn't too confusing reading. Also, sorry this chapter is shorter. It used to be much too long and so I felt it best to break it into two. Today's reading is the "short end of the stick" as it were.


	10. The Chip & Whistle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose goes out with the girls and meets someone else from school. Another watches from across the room,,,

Rose was still getting ready when the girls returned.  They barged into her room and immediately critiqued her choices.  They chattered on about what was in style and then raided her cupboard. 

“Wear this,” commanded Shareen. 

“Oh yeah that’s gorgeous and put this with it...” Kiesha added.  “And then belt it like so...”

Finally they deemed her presentable and they headed out arm in arm, giggling like the school girls they were. 

 

The Chip & Whistle was one of the better pubs on this side of town and its popularity was evident in the number of its patrons.  Her girl friends threaded themselves expertly through the press of people with Rose in tow.  Rose found the noise and the heat disorienting and was grateful to have a grip on Shareen’s hand.

“Here we are!” Kiesha sang out, waving to a few fellow students in a booth.

Rose recognized them and smiled and waved when they saw her.

Two of the boys jumped up and dragged a vacated table over.  She and Shareen carried over some chairs and everyone squeezed in.

A waitress appeared immediately and drink orders were placed.  Rose asked for water, but Kiesha ignored her and ordered her a fruit and rum concoction instead.  She gave Rose a saucy wink.

“So how is working life, Rose?” Amy asked, raising her voice over the din.

“It’s alright.  But I did miss going to school with all of you.  How did you like Middle School?”

Amy shrugged, “Not much different than Early School really.  They still expect you to pay attention and learn stuff.” She laughed.

Rory leaned into the conversation, sliding an arm along behind Amy.  “But the social scene is better.”  He and Amy shared a happy smile.

“Yeah,” agreed Shareen.  “Co-ed classes and school dances where the boys aren’t afraid to ask a girl to dance.”  She was looking meaningfully at Danny who grinned and swiftly jumped up and held out his hand. 

“Wanna dance, Shareen?”

“Well, yeah!”

“How about you?” Rory asked Amy, who nodded enthusiastically.

Rose watched them head to the crowded dance floor and disappear in the gyrating bodies.  She took a cautious sip of her drink when it arrived.  Potent.

“Hey, Rose Tyler.”

She turned back to see Shareen’s seat had been taken.  Jimmy Stone was two years her senior.  He and his posse were the ones who always got away with things.  Pranks and bullying mostly, but rumor had it that they’d also stolen the answers for final exams.   Given his lax attitude to studying and assignments, it was probably the only way he passed and was able to move on.

“Hello.”

“So I hear you’re a career woman now, got your own business and everything.”

“I run a shop with my mum.”

“Still, that’s pretty impressive.  There’s nothing like living in the real world to get a person to grow up.”  One of the other girls laughed loudly at someone’s comment and Jimmy shot her a frown before looking back at Rose and raising an eyebrow.

Rose smiled.  She did feel older than her friends and probably it was because of working instead of studying.

“Would you like to dance?”

Rose looked back at the dancers and shook her head.  Everyone was bumping into each other.  It didn’t look like much fun to her.

Jimmy took a long pull on his beer.  “So tell me Rose Tyler, what do you like to do?”

They chatted for awhile and she learned that he was back for the summer to work at his father’s carpentry business, but he was also hopeful to get a part time gig at one of the taverns.  He and some friends had put together a band and they were pretty good.  They’d played for many of the school dances and were even invited to play at another school for their Homecoming dance next fall.  Jimmy went on about how they planned to practice over the summer and how he was writing some songs of his own. “We just need that big break, you know?”

Rose didn’t know as she knew nothing about the music world, but she imagined it was like any other business you were starting from scratch.  After your own hard work, all it took was to be noticed by some influential people.  Rose explained a bit about the Emporium and her work but could tell that Jimmy really wasn’t focused on what she was saying.  She didn’t know if it was the beer or the music or the company, but he was distracted.  When his bottle was done, he excused himself and headed towards the bar.

Kiesha slid into the chair next and hugged Rose.  “Wow that was Jimmy Stone you were chatting up for forever!  He’s so handsome and did you check him out as he walked away?  Oh mama!”

Rose rolled her eyes.  “Yeah, so?”

“Yeah, so?!  What, do you have hunky guys beating down your door all day?  I don’t think so.  Listen, I know for a fact that Jimmy broke up with his girlfriend.  He’s available.  You’re available.  Do the math, Rose!”  Rose laughed off her friend.  The last thing she wanted right now was a boy. 

Kiesha wagged her finger in her face.  “Don’t wait forever,” she warned.  “A hunk like him won’t be on the market too long.”

 

Harry kept to the shadows.  He’d been surprised to see her here tonight and thanked his good fortune.  Father had left him in town to take care of the Rose situation and he’d been trying to come up with a way to contact her again without raising suspicions.  He was courting River Song now and it would not do to jeopardise that alliance. 

He watched carefully as she seemed to meet up with some young friends.  He noted who she chose to sit beside and what she ordered to drink.  He watched as her friends went off to dance and he was considering going over when he saw the young tough sit down.

Harry ordered another drink and sipped it as he watched them talk.  Rose did most of the listening and when she did speak the jerk didn’t seem to pay close attention.  He studied the young man’s face as he walked to the bar and liked what he saw.  Harry was a student of people and could read them like books.  In this boys’ face he saw hints of self absorption, pride, selfishness and debauchery.  Harry would learn his name and details about his life.  He could prove a useful ally in the demise of Rose Tyler.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've toyed with the idea of Jimmy Stone being a pawn in the destruction of Rose Tyler by some time travelling villan bent on she and the Doctor never meeting or getting together. This is one spin on that idea.


	11. Wilfred

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meanwile in the duchy of Smyth...primarily a chapter to set up future plot points. Summer has past and Wilfred the wise speaks with John.

Wilfred watched John.  They sat together in companionable silence before the fire, each with a book in hand.  To Wilfred’s estimation John had not turned a page in half an hour.

“What are you reading?  Must be in High Gallifreyan,” he commented drolly.

“Hmmmm?  No.  It’s an almanac.”

“Oh.  I thought it must be in High Gallifreyan.”

John set the book down in his lap.  “And why would you think that?”

“You haven’t turned a page in half an hour.”

“Ah,” he acknowledged and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“John, son, I have to ask.  What’s wrong?  You’ve not been yourself since you’ve come home.  I’ve watched and waited all summer thinking you’d work your way through whatever was bothering you, but you’re no better.”

“I’m fine.”

“What you are is a terrible liar.”  Wilfred looked at him expectantly.

The Doctor finally looked at his uncle and shook his head.  “A lot of people would disagree with you.”

“A lot of people don’t know you.  Not like I know you.  Now out with it. You obviously need to tell someone and I think it should be me.”  Wilfred closed his own book and tucked it into the chair beside his leg.  He was interested in a better story.

“I made a friend in the spring, just before graduation.  I really miss our time together and I find myself thinking about it a lot.”

“A girl,” Wilfred commented.  It was always a girl in situations like this.  Wilfred could easily remember his own youth and the trail of broken hearts he’d left behind before finding his beloved Eileen, God rest her soul.  “You’re friend’s a girl, isn’t she?”

“Yeah.” The single word seemed to weigh a ton as it slipped past his lips.

“Does Donna know?”

“Yeah.” Heavier still was this admission.

“And she’s okay with this: you pining after another?”

 “I’m not pining,” he protested.

“And I was born yesterday,” Wilfred muttered.

“Anyway, it’s over now.  We’re apart and that’s that.”

“Why?”

“Why?  Because I am the future Duke of Smyth and I am courting the most noble Donna of Arcadia.  It’s not in my character to make casual dalliances on the side.  I’d never insult Donna by doing that.”

“Bullocks,” Wilfred snorted.

“What?”  The Doctor was shocked that his uncle would believe him capable of two-timing.

“You heard me.  John, I’ve known you and Donna your whole lives.  If you two are in love with each other, I’ll eat my best hat for breakfast.”

John put his book aside and went to lean on the mantle and watch the flames.  With his back to him he explained the night of the graduation gala.  He told him of their mad plan to pretend to be a couple to escape the matches thrust upon them. 

Wilfred chuckled.  Trust Jack to come up with such an arrangement.  “I can imagine how you set the cat among the pigeons with that game.  But now you’re in another mess, aren’t you?  How long are you going to keep up this ruse and more importantly, does poor Lee know that it’s not real?”

“Yes, he knows.  Before we left for home we both wrote letters to our...friend, explaining the truth.  As for how long...”  John’s rested his forehead on the mantle as if too weary to stand up straight.  “I don’t know.  We never planned that part.  I guess we’ll keep it up until River marries Harry.  Then we can pretend a big break up and Donna can go to Lee for solace.”

“But what about you?  What about your heart?”  Wilfred came come to stand beside him at the fire.

“We’re trapped in two separate universes,” John sighed.  “She’s a commoner.”

Wilfred placed a comforting hand on his ward’s shoulder.  A log cracked in the flames sending a shower of sparks up the chimney to disappear in the night.

 

A few days later Wilfred handed John the ornate engraved invitation.  “Your parents want you to attend the fall festival in Capitol.”

“I have to preside over the festival here.”

“They’re a week apart, remember?  First in Captiol, and then here.”

“There’s too much to do.” John was afraid to go back.  He was afraid he would not be able to stay away from her and that would be bad for both of them.  Who needed their heart’s broken all over again?

Wilfred saw through his excuses. “You can’t hide in Smyth forever.  Your parents have the right to see their only child.  And you can hardly ignore the summons of the King.”

“But uncle...”

“I understand, son.  But something tells me you need to do this.  Go and see your parents.  Go and see the girl.  Maybe she’s moved on with her life and you’ll see that it’s okay to let her go.  You can’t pine for her forever; it’s not healthy for you or for your realm.”

“I don’t know...”

“John, you’ve been driving yourself to exhaustion and it needs to stop before you damage your health.  Take this holiday and bring me back a case of bananas.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love the character of Wildred Mott. I hope I've captured the essence of him in this dialogue.


	12. Fall Festival Fracas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some daring do to thwart some dastardly deeds.

Rose wanted six big pumpkins to put in her windows for the festival, so she headed to the smithy to see if she could borrow a wheel barrow. 

“Good afternoon, Mickey!  Would you mind if I borrowed this wheel barrow to take some pumpkins home?  I’ll bring it right back and who knows, there might be a treat in it for you, yeah?”

“Sure, Miss Rose.  Just let me sweep it out for you first.”  The blacksmith’s apprentice hurried to prepare the wheel barrow for her.  He had a not-so-secret crush on the Emporium shopkeeper, but he was too unsure of himself to make a move.  The same age as Rose, Mickey had never completed Early School when he lost his gran and became an orphan at thirteen.  After living on the streets for nearly a year, the blacksmith took him on as an apprentice. Lately Mickey had taken on more responsibility as the smithy was laid up with a persistent case of gout.  Even with that bit of personal advancement, Mickey didn’t feel he had anything to offer the beautiful and as of late, successful shopkeeper.

Rose pushed the barrow through the market and made her pumpkin purchase.  She also added a pair of knobby gourds and some stalks of colourful dried corn.  There was a ribbon prize for the best decorated shop window and Rose wanted the Emporium to gain the prestige.  Business was good, but it never hurt to keep the name out there.

True to her word, she quickly unloaded her purchases and grabbed up a paper sack of peppermint sticks as a thank you.  They were Mickey’s favourite; he came in almost every payday to buy the sweets.

“I’m back, Micks and I’ve got a treat for you,” she sang out.

“Treating another fella while my back’s turned, are you?”

“Jimmy!” 

All summer Jimmy had been a persistent suitor bringing her flowers and trinkets.  He’d talked her into going with him to hear him sing and play at a pub in a nearby town.  He’d introduced her to everyone as “his girl” and “his little woman”.  Rose hadn’t argued in public – most people were strangers and most of them were drunk – but she did let Jimmy know in private that she’d never agreed to be “his girl”.  He’d gotten angry and stormed off threatening to never see her again; that she should count herself lucky that he’d even have her.  Less than a week later however, Jimmy was back with an apology and more flowers.

Jackie had been pleased that Rose had a beau.  She didn’t think it was anything serious, but a girl had to start somewhere.   Rose had been carefully neutral.  It was nice to have something outside of the shop to do and it soothed her ego to have a handsome boy like Jimmy Stone courting her.  It also didn’t hurt that Kiesha was jealous: _It’s so not fair; you didn’t even try!_   Yet her heart was untouched by all the attention and more times than she wanted to count she caught herself remembering a thinner face with a pouty lower lip and the deepest chocolate eyes.

Then, just before Jimmy was to leave for school, they fought again.  Jimmy had been pressuring Rose to let him do more than kiss her cheek hello and goodbye, but Rose had held the line against his advances.  “You’re my girl and I want you to know it!” he shouted at her.  “I’ve been patient all summer and now you’re going to send me away without putting out?  Do you know how much I’ve spent on you and this is all the repayment I’m to get?”

“First of all, I never asked you to give me all those things!  And secondly you can’t buy love and you can’t buy my body!  I’m not a whore!”

“No, you’re a stupid shop girl who couldn’t even get her A levels.  It’s your mum that’s the whore.”

Rose had slapped him hard and run away, locking the door behind her.  He pounded on the door and shouted at her until the patrol police came along and sent him away.

Rose never saw or heard from him again until now.  It was fall break and Jimmy Stone was back in town.

 

“Miss Rose?” Mickey didn’t like Jimmy’s tone of voice as he spoke to her.

“Get lost.  I want a word in private with my girl.”  Jimmy growled and stepped out of the shadows.  With an apologetic look at Rose, Mickey sprinted for the door and Rose didn’t blame him.  Jimmy had always been fit, but now his neck was thick and his bulging shoulders and thighs strained under their clothing. His bare forearms were corded with muscle and his hands looked huge.  Jimmy had been busy growing and working out.

Jimmy watched Rose’s eyes widen at the sight of him and he smirked, “Like what you see, don’t ya?  I’ve been working at a blacksmith’s as my co-op this semester.” He flexed a bicep for her. “I stopped by to see if I could pick up any tips from the old man when in you strolled with your borrowed wheelbarrow and your treats.”  He sneered the last word suggestively and let his eyes wander over her body.  Whereas Jimmy had grown the hard plains of a man, Rose had grown the soft curves of a woman.

“Don’t be rude, Jimmy.  I brought Mickey some candies for letting me use the ‘barrow, that’s all.”

“So you’re not above giving back, if it’s the right person.”

“Don’t talk like that.”

“Don’t tell me how to talk.  I’ll say whatever I want to say and what I want to say is it’s high time I collected some of my own thank you’s.”  Jimmy was crowding into her personal space.

Rose refused to be intimidated. “No Jimmy, we’re done.”

“We’re not done until I say so.”  He grabbed her arm as she tried to leave and dragged her deeper into the room.

“Let me go, Jimmy!”  Rose struggled but it made little difference.

“You’re mine Rose Tyler.  I bought and paid for you time and again and you’ve been nothing but a tease.  I’m done with the teasing.  I’m a man now and I want what’s mine.”  He grabbed a branding iron and shoved it into the fire. “Maybe I’ll just put my mark on you.  Tell the whole world who you belong to once and for all.” 

Rose screamed and yanked away, but he held her fast with his hard fingers.  “No!  Jimmy!  Let me go!”  In her terror she didn’t think of scratching at his eyes or tearing at his ear.

“Let her go.”

Jimmy spun them around to see a tall thin man silhouetted in the doorway.  “Get lost mate.  This is between me and mine.”

“Help me, please!” Rose cried and was rewarded with a back handed cuff that sent her to her knees, her ears ringing.

With a roar, the tall man swept up a sword from the mend pile and came at them.  Jimmy had just enough time to drop Rose’s arm and grab the branding iron before he had to block the first swing.

Jimmy was no swordsman but what he lacked in skill he made up in brute strength.  He swung the iron bar, its tip glowing red, at the intruder’s head but missed widely.  He parried the next sword thrust and then swung again, this time lower hoping to catch him in the stomach.

The two men danced about kicking up the sawdust in the smithy so that Rose could barely see.  She could hear the grunts of exertion and the hiss of swinging weapons and the occasional clang of metal which made her wince.  She started to crawl for the door and escape.

“No you don’t,” ordered Jimmy.  “You stay right there.  I’m not done with you.”

“Yes, stay right there so I don’t trip over you.”

Rose froze.  She knew that voice and suddenly her fear transferred from self to the man fighting to save her.  “John!” she whispered.

The fight continued, but Jimmy was tiring.  He’d wasted his energy in big swings while John had conserved his with small jabs.  Suddenly Jimmy grabbed a length of chain in his free hand and flicked it to try and wrap around John’s sword arm.  John danced out of reach before grabbing up his own chain.  This he snaked out towards Jimmy’s feet and succeeded in catching his ankle.

Jimmy cried out and stumbled.  John pressed his attack.  “I believe you shall be the one to wear the mark,” he flicked the blade slicing a curve into Jimmy’s cheek.  “The letter “c” for coward.  Only cowards abuse helpless women.” 

Jimmy bellowed in pain and rage and rushed John.  At the last possible second John sidestepped and brought down the hilt of his sword on the back of his head.  Jimmy dropped like a stone.  John stood over him, chest heaving.  “If you ever touch her again, I’ll kill you,” he vowed to the unconscious man and then he stepped over him heading towards Rose.

Rose scrambled to her feet and met him half way, choking back a hysterical mix of sobs and laughter.  He dropped the sword and wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight.  She looped her arms around his neck and pressed her face to his shoulder.

“John!  How did you know to find me?”

“Mickey ran for help and ran into me.  Are you alright?”

“Yes, yes I will be.  John, you’re here!”  Rose was stating the obvious, but to her it was a miracle.

John’s arms loosened just enough that he could lean away and look at her face.  “Father commanded my presence here for the fall festival.  I was working up the courage to come see you when Mickey found me.”

“Working up the courage?  What do you mean?”

John smiled ruefully.  “I didn’t know what kind of reception I’d get.  You didn’t come to see me off and I was afraid you were disgusted with me.”

“I got your letter, but by then I’d already heard the news and I was afraid of what I might read.  I opened it too late to go see you off!  I’m so sorry!  I was afraid you’d think me ungrateful for your friendship, for all you’ve done for our store – “

He tugged her back into a tight embrace with a groan. 

A discreet cough had them jumping apart.

“Mickey!  Thank you for coming to get me.  Miss Rose is alright because of you.”

Rose hugged Mickey offering her own heartfelt thanks.  She pressed the bag of peppermints into his hands.  “I don’t know how to thank you.”

Mickey blushed and sputtered.  “I’m just glad you’re all right.  That Jimmy Stone’s a bad one.”  He worriedly eyed the prone figure, taking in the fight scene.

The Doctor clapped him on the shoulder.  “He’s just knocked out.  If you can let him sleep a bit, I’ll send around the police to collect him.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You just knew I had to sneak in a sword fight, right?


	13. Declaration

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the aftermath of Jimmy's attack, Rose and the Doctor have to deal with difficult emotions. The Doctor says something he never though he would.

John accompanied Rose home.  He had taken her hand and threaded it through his arm in a socially acceptable manner and then covered it with his other hand so he could touch her bare skin.  What he longed to do was sweep her up into his arms or at least wrap his arm about her waist but he knew he had no right to such intimacies.  Holding her so closely in the smithy had been an indulgence brought on by the high emotions of the fight and rescue.

“I have no right to ask, but how do you know Jimmy Stone?” 

Rose flushed with shame.  “When my friends came back from this school this past summer they took me out to celebrate.  I thought maybe it would be a good thing...you know...to kinda get on with my life...after...well, after June.”  The hand covering hers squeezed and Rose stumbled over her story.

“Go on,” he prompted quietly.

“Jimmy saw me there and though he is two years older, he recognized me and spoke to me.  That was flattering.  A few days later he came round to the shop and bought fifty pounds of nails for his father’s business and asked me for a walk.”

“And you went with him.”  Rose glanced up at the Doctor in time to see the muscle in his cheek twitch, but he kept looking straight ahead as they walked.

“I did,” she confessed.  “I think I was a bit star-struck that an older, popular guy would want to take me out.  We had a walk through the park and Jimmy was the perfect gentleman.  He kept coming around after that, bringing me gifts and flowers.  I didn’t always accept his invitations, but sometimes I did just to get him to stop pestering me in front of the customers.  This went on all summer, but as the weeks passed Jimmy started getting too possessive and controlling.  We’d fight and then he’d come back all apologetic.”

“And you’d take him back,” the Doctor’s voice was quieter still.

“Yes,” she whispered.  She was ashamed to admit her weakness.  She’d been depressed and Jimmy had been a distraction from her despair over John.  It was hard to admit that she had used him in such a way.  Jimmy hadn’t been that far off when he accused her of being a tease. 

“Then right before he left for his senior year we broke up, or at least I thought we did.”  Rose didn’t explain what they’d fought about – that was just too humiliating to confess to a sophisticated man like John.  “I put him out of my mind and never heard from or saw him again until today.”

They walked the rest of the way in silence.  Rose felt embarrassed over her botched love life and how she’d let things get so obviously out of control.  She cringed inwardly, hating that John had had to learn about this.  She had used another person and it made her feel despicable.  At least he didn’t let go of her and kept holding onto the hand crooked through his elbow.  She could feel the tension in his hand and arm and felt guilty for causing it.

The Doctor was inwardly wrestling with his fury.  That wonderful Rose should have been prey for such scum as a Jimmy flew in the face of all he knew to be good and just.  He had defended her today but who would protect her tomorrow?  She had no father or brothers to see that she was treated rightly. 

He wanted to whisk her away to Smyth.  Forget the festival and his parent’s wishes.  If they left right now they could be there by morning.  She’d adore Wilfred and Wilfred would adore her.  His fury rose higher from the fact that he knew he just couldn’t act on his instincts.  He could not do that to Rose.  He could not destroy her reputation and ruin her chances at happiness.  Neither could he reconcile himself to abandoning her.

 

“Oh good you’re back Rose.  I wanted to put a shepherd’s pie together and I thought you wanted to do up the window display.”  Jackie stopped in her tracks when she noticed who followed Rose into the shop. 

Jackie took in the man who stood before her.  He’d grown nearly two inches over the summer.  He’d traded his Academy uniform for a sharply tailored pin-striped suit and a long overcoat that swirled around his ankles.  He was still quite thin but he was handsome in a patrician sort of way.  Jackie pursed her lips however at the Converse-clad feet.  Apparently you can raise up the man out of the boy, but you can’t take the boy out of the man. “Your grace!  This is a surprise.”

“I’m sure it is.”  There was censure in his tone and Rose looked at him worriedly.  “Tell me, Mrs Tyler, do you approve of the young men that date your daughter?  Did you ever even bother to meet Jimmy Stone, for example, or were you just too glad to push your eligible daughter out into the world so as to reel in a husband?”

Jackie bristled, her protective momma bear awakened.  “Now, you listen here!  I don’t care if you’re the King himself, nobody makes innuendos like that about me and my daughter!”

“Mum!”

“And I’d like to know where you get off marching in here on your high horse after you treated Rose so badly.  You broke her heart you did.  You and your fancy ways and fancy words, filling her head with things that can never be and then,” Jackie snapped her fingers in his face, “you just up and disappear back to your fancy dukedom, never to be heard from again!”

“Mum!”  Rose was shouting now.  She’d never told her mum about John’s letter and now that was coming back to haunt her.

“I’ll have you know I did write Rose.  My friend sent my letter to her that same day,” John looked questioningly at Rose, who nodded glumly.  “I also wrote a hundred other letters but those were never sent.  I thought that if Rose hurt half as much as I did, then she didn’t need a constant reminder of what could never be.”  John leaned over speaking vehemently into Jackie’s face.  “I never set out to hurt you daughter, Mrs Tyler, I never meant to lead her on, and I certainly never meant to fall in love!”

The Tyler’s gasped and John gulped.  That last bit had slipped out of its own accord.  Now he’d really complicated things.

John reached out and grabbed both of Rose’s hands in his.  “I’m sorry, Rose.  I’m so, so sorry.”  He wasn’t really sure what he was apologizing for, but regret always came easily to him.  He did love her, despite all the reasons to the contrary and now he’d injured a man and insulted her mother.

Rose took a half step closer so that she could look straight up at him.  Her hammering heart lurched to see the strain and conflict on his face.  “Don’t be sorry, please.  Please don’t be sorry.  Neither of us planned to fall in love, but it was natural and beautiful and I have no regrets.”

“Then you love me too?”  The hopeful puppy look on his face would have melted the hardest of hearts.

“Oh course she does, you plum!  What do you think I was going on about?”  Jackie reminded them they were not alone.

And she didn’t leave them alone either.  They locked up early and Jackie dragged them both up to the apartment to sit at their tiny table while she made the shepherd’s pie.  Jackie knew what young love was like and she was determined to keep them from complicating their lives anymore than what had already happened.

John longed to have his first kiss with Rose, but had to content himself with grabbing her hand under the table and holding it on his thigh.  He didn’t dare think about the ramifications of what he was doing.  He’d have a lifetime to wallow in self recrimination later.  The starry-eyed look on Rose’s face was worth all the future pain.

Jackie made small talk as she bustled about.  She knew better than to ask Rose for help; that would mean she’d have to let go of his lordship’s hand which they thought they were sneaking under the table. 

When supper was in the oven, she made them all tea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to keep reminding myself that our heros are young (15 and 20)...


	14. Jackie Talks Tough

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mother Jackie tries to protect Rose and the Doctor. The curtian is parted and we learn how and why Jimmy chased after Rose.

She glared at John over her tea cup.  “So, have the laws of the land changed?”

The couple shared an uncomfortable look.  “No they have not,” he replied.

“I didn’t think so.”  Jackie set her cup down firmly on the table and tried to look sternly at them both.  “Then you know the pickle you’re in.  I’m going to tell you straight: I can’t let you be together.  I will not let my daughter be your mistress.”

John blustered, “I would never sully Rose with suggesting...”

Jackie held up her hand.  “I know that’s the way you feel right now.  But trust me, you’ll be considering it so let’s take that card off the table.  Now, does your girlfriend know that you’re in love with someone else?”

John tugged on his ear, “Well, actually that’s the thing.  She’s my friend, my best friend, but she’s not my girlfriend.  We’re faking the courting thing so as to avoid other...er...entanglements.”

Jackie arched an eyebrow.  More complications.

Rose spoke up.  “Mum, Donna’s in love with another fellow but her parent’s didn’t think he was good enough for her.  Both she and John were being pushed into arranged marriages with people they didn’t love.”

“And is Donna’s beau a commoner too?  Can’t you people fall in love with people in your own set?”

Before John could retort, Rose answered.  “Lee is a noble; he’s just lower on the social ladder than John.”

“So what was your plan then?  To wait it out until the others are all married up and then break it off so she could marry her sweetheart?  That’s all well and good for her, but what about you?”

John looked away and sniffed before shaking his head tightly.

“You know you’ll never get away with it.  Your father for one will never stand for you not marrying and not carrying on the family line.”  Jackie was being brutally practical.

John looked at her, his expression bleak.  Rose squeezed his hand tightly, offering the only comfort she could give.  Their little glass bubble was about to break.

Jackie sighed.  She hated that she had to be the tough one, but she’d been a single parent for so long that she knew it was up to her to lay it out straight and not indulge their romantic fantasies.  “All right you two.  This is how I see it.  You’re young.  I know you think you’re in love, and you are in a way, but young love doesn’t always last.  I had hoped that all these months apart would cool things off, but obviously it hasn’t.  That’s too bad; it would have been easier if it had.”  She rearranged the sugar pot and milk jug on the table.  “After this weekend you’ll be going back to your seat in Smyth and lord knows when you’ll be back again – “

“Christmas,” muttered John.

“Christmas?” Rose asked. That was just a few weeks away.

“Yes.  Mother decided she wants to have a big family Christmas this year as it’s my last before I officially become the Duke.  My uncle and cousins are invited.”

“Okay, then you have until Christmas to prepare yourselves.  You know you have to end this and say goodbye to your feelings for each other,” Jackie nodded sympathetically.  Her heart was breaking for her daughter but she had to make them see this rightly. “Rose, you must release John so that he can do his duty and marry a royal to continue the line.”

“Yes, mum.”  Rose whispered around the lump in her throat.  She knew her duty.

“And John, you must learn to forget about Rose.  She doesn’t want you to get married to someone you can’t love.  It wouldn’t be fair to you or to your bride.  You have to do this for the sake of each other’s happiness.”  Jackie wiped a tear off her own cheek; she felt like a monster.  “And I will carefully hunt for a good man for Rose so that when she’s ready they can make a nice life together.”

When the shepherd’s pie was cooked, it was left to cool on the counter.  No one had any appetite.

 

Harry snapped the stem of his wine glass with repressed rage.  Word had reached him that Jimmy Stone had been arrested for assaulting a woman and a royal.  He’d repeated warned the lout about his temper.  It was one thing to intimidate someone; it was entirely different if you were caught. 

Well he’d also warned him that he’d be on his own if he messed it up, so as far as Harry was concerned their arrangement was terminated.  What a pity, all that time and money wasted.  Harry had spent quite a bit buying Rose all those gifts and paying Jimmy’s expenses to take her out. 

Harry had been pretty sure that Rose wouldn’t fall for Jimmy, but he had hoped to charge in and be the brave knight to her damsel in distress.  She would have been grateful and he would have charmed her right into his arms and then into his bed.  It was a game he’d played before with great success and he’d been confident it would work again.  What he hadn’t counted on was the meddlesome do-gooder Doctor. 

How could he have predicted the King would get uncharacteristically sentimental and want to see his son?  How could he have known that Rose would bump into Jimmy before the staged encounter that would make him out to be the hero, or that Jimmy would be stupid enough to go off script?

Harry drummed his fingers on the table.  The more he watched from the sidelines, the more he wanted her.  It wasn’t just because dear old dad had this sick idea of hurting a man already in the grave.  Now it was personal for him too.  Rose was developing into a beautiful woman and he loved beautiful things.  The fact that John was besotted with her too made his eventual conquest even sweeter.  Anything to cause that spoiled King’s son grief was a wonderful idea to Harry.

The Doctor was a complication, but he could wait him out.  The Doctor couldn’t marry her and wouldn’t stoop to take her as a mistress, so inevitably he would break her heart again and this time Harry would sweep in and gather up all the pieces.  Rose would be putty in his hands. He was eager to take that fire he’d seen the day he’d surprised in the alley and use it to warm his bed.  Harry couldn’t marry her either, but he could and would take her as mistress.

What he didn’t look forward to was having a conversation with his impatient father.


	15. The Bell Tolls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was wonderful until it was over.

John stood to at the right hand of his father on the platform as the Citadel’s Elite Guard marched by.  They were followed by the farmers who pulled or pushed carts with samples of their harvests and their animals.  Close on their heels were the jugglers, clowns and stilt walkers, and following them were the townspeople.  Everyone was converging on the town square for the opening ceremonies of the Capitol’s Fall Festival.

Once everyone was assembled, Chancellor Saxon came forward and offered a prayer thanking the gods for the safety and prosperity which Captiol had enjoyed for the year.  He extolled on the virtues of clean living and moral conduct and how their wise choices had led to such great blessings.  Then the Exchequer Regent of Arcadia offered a similar prayer thanking the gods for a bountiful harvest and brisk trade with our neighbours and with our neighbouring countries.  Finally the King gave a speech where he congratulated the citizens of Captiol for being a shining example of cooperation, hard work and good business.  He reminded them of the wisdom of their forefather’s who had realized they could accomplish more together than apart.  Lastly he encouraged everyone to enjoy the festival and accept the blessings they deserved.

As the men spoke, John scanned the crowds looking for Rose.  He was happy to see her flanked by her mum and Jack who had also made the trip to Capitol for the festival.  John had apprised him of what happened at the smithy and Jack was making arrangements to have Rose watched over (discretely of course) until Jimmy was either imprisoned or sent packing – hopefully before the week’s end.  Apparently the Captain still had connections and favours he could call in and John was deeply grateful to his friend.  As much as he longed to be Rose’s personal guardian he couldn’t watch over her 24/7.

Rose smiled at him and raised a hand partway in greeting.  He allowed himself a ghost of a smile and a slight nod and told himself that had to be sufficient.  All they could do was look, no touch.  He watched as Jack leaned in and said something.  No doubt it was provocative because Rose turned red and shot him another look across the crowd.  Jackie huffed and crossed her arms and Jack laughed.  John’s feet itched to jump off the platform and push his way to her side.  His hand twitched bereft of hers.  Never had he hated being a royal more.

Six of the elite guard let off a folly overhead and with a shout the King declared the festival open.

“Such a wonderful display, don’t you think son?” his mother asked as they walked off the platform.  “I swear the pumpkins are even larger than they were last year.”

“You’re right mother.  It has been a particularly fine year.”

 

Four days, three nights...days that dragged and nights that flew.  Such was the perception of the young couple.  Each night John found a way to get to the Emporium; once it was in time for supper and two times it was well past.  Jackie made a point of hovering in the background, randomly making her presence known, but she didn’t have the heart to completely deny them those brief hours together.  She sacrificed two nights of dancing with Fred so that Rose and John could sit and talk.  What bits of the conversation she overheard made little sense to her, but the voices were happy and for the moment that was what mattered.

Jackie remembered what it was like to be in love and not able to have her love with her all the time.  Pete had been mysterious, coming and going, and never really talking about who he was or what was happening between them.  They’d had their own share of heartache and misunderstanding.  But finally he’d come to her for good, asking papa for her hand and they’d married.  That had been the happiest year of Jackie’s life.  Rose’s future did not look so promising, but Jackie could not bring herself to deny them these stolen moments.  She knew how precious the memories would in the years to come.

Rose didn’t win the window decorating contest; that honour went to the bakery next door, but the increased foot traffic boded well for both establishments.  Jackie had also negotiated with the bakery to buy all Rose’s pumpkin decorations since they now were having a run on pumpkin pie and muffins.  Jackie cut into one of those pies and served it to their guest.

“When do you leave for Smyth?” Jackie asked.  She inwardly winced at her own question, but somebody had to keep this fairytale moment in perspective.

“Tomorrow...right after the closing ceremonies.  Smyth will be holding its own fall festival the next day and I have to be back to preside over it.”  It was a dismal fact that John had been trying to avoid.  The delicious pie suddenly tasted like sawdust but he valiantly finished his slice and washed it down with tea.

Rose smiled encouragingly.  “I’m sure you’ll do a splendid job.”  She could imagine him standing before the people, speechmaking in a clear loud voice. 

John shrugged.  “We’ll see.  It’s always been Uncle Wilfred’s job, but we decided that it was time I stepped into my own shoes as it were.”

Rose silently reached over and took his hand. The serious look they exchanged had nothing to do with young love.

 

Jackie collected their dessert dishes and washed up.  It was getting very late and she could see how everyone was hiding their yawns in an effort to extend the last evening just a bit longer.  Finally she spoke up announcing the dreaded truth: it was time.  As it were he’d have to pass the night-watchman to get into the Citadel and it was important for everyone that there was no talk about his late night visits here.

The young couple groaned but agreed.  In sympathy Jackie let them have a few minutes of privacy to say their goodbyes.  Hand in hand they went out through the back garden. 

At the gate, John turned around to look at Rose.  This was it.  Slowly he reached out and cupped her face with both his hands.  They trembled slightly and Rose lifted her hands to steady his.

“I want to kiss you so badly, but I’m afraid if I do, I’ll never be able to kiss another,” he confessed, his voice strained and low.

“I know what you mean,” she agreed.  “As it is...,” she gave a watery chuckle and squeezed his wrists to say what she couldn’t.

He pulled her to him and pressed her head to his chest.  “Oh Rose!  How could the universe be so cruel?”

She didn’t have an answer and so she wrapped her arms about his trim waist and held on in denial that their moment was quickly slipping away.

The bells chimed in the town’s tower and he pressed a lingering kiss to the top of her head.  “The bells toll, my love.”

Sadly they stepped a part.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thus ends the fluffy stuff.


	16. Harry Makes a Play

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose is still shaken over the mess with Jimmy and deeply hurting by the doomed nature of her love for John. Harry steps in offering a sympathethic ear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "While the cat's away, the mice will play." The same goes for rats.

The day after the festival closed, Harry sent four dozen pale pink and yellow roses.  The card read: _To the most beautiful rose at the festival.  H._

Jackie scowled at the flowers. 

“It’s not like that Mum.  Yellow roses mean friendship and pale pink means a gentle admiration and sympathy.”  John had given Rose a little book on the meaning of flowers after one of their many rambling conversations.

Jackie snorted rudely, “Four dozen of ‘em?”

“Harry is just being flamboyant.  He is an old friend of John’s, like Jack.  He feels sorry for me – for us.”  Rose thoughtfully rubbed a soft petal between her fingers.  Four dozen was a lot...

“You forget I was born and raised in Saxony, sweetheart.  I know that royal family.”  Jackie didn’t think Rose would succumb to rebound, not with another royal, but she had to be watchful.  “You be careful with that one.”  Rose was too tender-hearted and now that tender heart was broke open and deeply bruised.

 

Harry knew Rose’s weekly routine for going to the market.  By now he was sure that her mother would be hovering around Rose like a protective hawk thanks to stupid Jimmy and meddlesome John.  That was okay.  Harry would just approach her when she was alone.  He loved a good challenge and anticipated a sweet reward.

Sure enough, Rose came alone to market on her usual day and visited the stalls in her usual sequence.  As soon as she had finished her shopping he approached.  “Good morning Rose Tyler.”

Rose turned at his voice, offering up a friendly smile.  “Good morning!  I thought you’d be half way to Saxony by now.”

“Did you get my flowers?”

“Yes, they were beautiful.  Thank you.  But really, they were too much.”

“A dozen for each day, a mere rose for each hour.  I thought of sending two dozen for each day as that would mean 24 hours but although I noticed you throughout the days of the festival, I never saw you at any of the evening events and so didn’t want to presume.”  Rose hid a frown – had Harry been stalking her?

“But wherever you were, you appeared particularly, shall we say _radiant_?  I was completely bewitched!  I heard what happened with your young man Mr. Stone just before the festival started and I was completely horrified!  It was such, such  good fortune that John just happened to be passing by...well...I must say it was terrible.  Love can be so cruel.”

Rose paled visibly.  “Indeed it can be so.”

Harry took her by the arm.  “Say now, you look faint!  Here, let’s sit you down.”

Rose let him lead her over to a shaded bench.  He took her basket from unresisting fingers and, setting it to his other side, scooted next to her on the boards.  He held her limp hand and patted it gently as if to restore circulation.

“Are you okay?  Can I get you a cider?”

“I’ll be fine.”

Harry kept hold of her hand until Rose seemed to come back to awareness and gently withdrew it.  He then placed an arm along the back of the bench, turning towards her and leaning in.  He was curious as to how much into her personal space she would allow him.  “We’re friends, remember?  I think you really need a friend just now.”

Rose blinked sad eyes at him.  Close up she could see that his pale moustache was filling in and turning a darker gold that matched his long eyelashes.  His pale blue eyes held an eager intensity she found nearly mesmerizing.  Mutely she nodded.  It would be nice to have someone who sympathized with her.  Jack had left with John.  Keisha and Shareen had gone back to school, not that she could confide in them anyway, and her mum... well, she was her mum.

Experimentally, Harry set his hand on her far shoulder.  He kept the pressure light, just the way he’d learned to capture baby birds.  “You can count on me, Rose.  I won’t abandon you.”  When she didn’t respond, he allowed his hand to increase pressure.  “Let me take you to lunch.”

Rose stiffened and Harry knew he’s pushed as far as he could for the moment.  “I need to get back.  Thank you anyway.”

Harry jumped to his feet and extended a hand to her, “Another time then.”  He phrased it as a statement and was pleased to note she didn’t contradict him.  He picked up her basket and crooked his arm invitingly.  “I’m headed your way.  I’ll walk with you.”

He kept her engaged in idle conversation, nudging her away from the melancholy thoughts of before.  Gradually, her hand relaxed on his arm and her voice took on more of her natural vibrancy.

Before they reached her street, Harry begged off saying he had business in a different direction.  In truth, he didn’t want to meet the mother.  Most girls liked a bit of a clandestine rendezvous and he wanted to test Rose to see if she liked the same.  If he could keep her isolated from her mother, she would be more susceptible to him.

He gallantly kissed her hand and watched her walk away.  He liked the curve of her waist and the sway of her hips.  He bit down on his lip in delicious anticipation.


	17. Harry Presses On

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry continues his advances in a game Rose doesn't realize she playing.

In the remaining weeks before Christmas Harry kept up his subtle campaign.  His betrothal to River would be officially announced at the winter solstice, only days before Christmas.  He knew that Rose would use his engagement as a barrier between them so he had a looming deadline in which to breech her crumbling defences.

He had planted seeds of hope, liberally and strategically.  He’d told her a fascinating tale of a royal who abdicated his dukedom for love of a commoner.  Little did she know that this tale was about her own parents!  He repeatedly expressed his admiration of her character and her beauty.  He shared his frustrations as a royal in the restrictions it placed upon him.

In a bold gamble he even intimated that he was the least bound by duty, and that John by virtue of being the King’s only son was doubly tied.  There was no way he could bridge the void between them, whereas Harry might be so persuaded if the reason was for love.

He hadn’t known how Rose would react to hearing him mention John.  If she dissolved into tears than his would be the broad shoulder and sheltering arms that comforted her.  If she was unmoved then he would know that he was turning her and that her affections would soon be his.

Rose had been saddened at hearing John’s name but she didn’t argue the implied comparison.  She’d been silent and kept her own counsel and Harry was cheated out his desired outcome.

Harry continued to subtly probe Rose’s personal boundaries.  She was a generous and compassionate person by nature and he pulled on that relentlessly.  She was naively virginal in the ways of men and women and Harry found it fascinating to map how far he could get physically and emotionally.  He could now take her hand in the crook of his arm without asking.  She had become accustomed to his kiss on the back of her hand, so he had taken to extending the gesture and exhaling softly, often accompanying it with a soft caress of her wrist.

Next he planned to touch the small of her back or maybe brush her shoulders, unless of course he had the good fortune of tucking a flyway stand of hair behind her ear, then he’s let his fingers linger on that pulse point before brushing across her cheek, maybe a thumb along the jaw...

 

Rose leaned on Harry more than she knew she should.  His consistent attention soothed her frayed nerves and she found she looked forward to their time together.  He never came around the shop, always contriving to meet up with her somewhere else.  Sometimes one of his servants would slip her a note when she was out and about, asking her to meet at a park or a cafe.  If she had time, she would. 

Even though she and John had agreed not to try and communicate, she longed for a letter or a note, some small sign that he missed her at least half as much as she did him.  Many times she was tempted to try and smuggle him a letter (Harry had even kindly offered to be a go-between) but in the end Rose always chose to honour their agreement.  She had to be strong.

She fearfully listened to any scrap of gossip her mother and others discussed in her presence.  Most of it was the usual about family and neighbours, or the antics of the latest crop of students at the Academy.  Much rarer were the nuggets of news about the royals, and much of that was just a rehash of who wore what to what. Never was there a word about John.  Rose couldn’t decide if hearing nothing was better than hearing how he was getting on with his life without her.

Rose felt that she was starving, that she was shrivelling up to nothing on the inside... a slow and invisible death of the heart.  _Perhaps,_ she thought during sleepless nights, _my heart will atrophy and fall away and I will finally be free to get on with my husk of a life._

 

After one such sleepless night, Harry presented Rose with a kitten.  “You need a cat in your shop.  It will keep the mice away and be good company for you.”  He placed the ball of grey fur in her hands and watched jealously as Rose rubbed her cheek against the fluffiness.  Her stroking fingers encountered a tiny pink collar with a heart shaped tag.  “Her name is Missy.  I hope you don’t mind that I already named her?”

Rose tested the name on her tongue, “Hello, Missy,” to which the cat purred and bumped her chin with its head.  Impulsively Rose placed a hand on his arm.  “Thank you Harry.  She’s adorable.”

It was the first time Rose initiated touching!  Harry could have danced a jig.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope no one is offended that I snuck in Missy as a cat. She is actually important to the plot.


	18. The Doctor Makes Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A look at how John is spending his time in Smyth and a discovery that could change everything.

In Smyth, the Doctor and Donna kept up the charade of courting, making sure they were seen together as often as possible, for the briefest of time.   To make it more comfortable for the play actors, Wilfred and Jack took turns pretending to be their chaperones.  This meant they could keep their public display of affection to a minimum and blame it on their zealous shadows.  Over all the arrangement worked well.

When not escorting Donna to various events, John made it his project to visit every farm, ranch and business in the holdings of Smyth.  His eidetic memory allowed him to quickly learn names and faces, which further endeared him to his constituents.  He wanted to know everything about anything and set himself a grueling pace to absorb as much as possible.  His friends watched with growing concern; they knew he was running from his heartache.

The Doctor was throwing himself into becoming a Duke to keep the nightmares at bay.  It was bad enough that Rose haunted his waking hours, but to have her screaming his name and he unable to reach her in his dreams was the purest torture.  He resumed his fencing lessons with passion.  Jimmy Stone had nearly bested him that day with his brute strength; a near tragedy he confessed to no one, but vowed to himself would never be repeated.  He might be thin, but he was wiry and fast and if he worked hard on it he could get stronger.  This pacifist bookworm (his father’s once overheard description) would have muscles of iron and bones of steel to encase the space that once housed his heart.

As much as possible he helped to bring Donna and Lee together.  He knew how precious his stolen moments with Rose were to him and so he did his best to give his friend the same.  It did him good to know that she had found her soul mate and to see her so happy.  The Doctor and Jack also put the wheels in motion to improve Lee’s status with a well deserved promotion and an expansion of lucrative responsibilities.  The lad’s prodigious stutter hid a very clever mind.  When the time was right, he would well set to give Donna a great home and life.

In his spare time the Doctor immersed himself in Gallifrey law, specifically the marriage laws and laws of succession.  He found an account of Peter Arcadia’s abdication which he shared with his confidant Jack.

“Would you do it, Doc?  Give up everything,” Jack gestured to the very comfortable room they had retreated to after dinner, “to be with Rose?”

“Yes,” he answered without any reservation.  “For Rose I would do anything.”

“What about the duchy?  You’re an only child.  And the next male in line is Tony and he’s what, four years old?”  The blight of only having girls had moved from Arcadia to Smyth in a generation.  After 300 years the concept of patriarchal succession was becoming problematic.

John rubbed the back of his neck wearily.  “Uncle Wilf is an excellent regent.  I’d make him a full Duke if I could.  And then of course there are Tony’s excellent parents.”

“And what about your father, the King?  Would he actually grant your application?”

John was very quiet.  “I don’t know,” he replied at last.  He dropped his mask and let his despair show.

Jack reached across the span between their chairs and gripped his knee.  “Don’t give up, my friend.  The love you two have – it’s worth fighting for.  He might be the King but he was your father first, and don’t forget the Queen can be very persuasive when she wants to be.  You’re her darling baby boy.  She would want you to be happy.”

John smiled wanly accepting his friend’s encouragement.  He was desperate for a solution that would put Rose forever in his life.

“So, say you can get away with this, what will you do?  After you marry the love of your life, of course.”

“I think I’d like to teach.  And I have a lot of ideas for inventions that I could tinker on and maybe sell.”

“Well Rose’s dowry would certainly help you do that!”

“True enough!  Why do you think I fell in love with her?”

“Oh right,” Jack drawled, “you mean it had nothing to do with her being totally gorgeous and sweet and smart and...”

John held up his hand to stop Jack’s litany of Rose’s virtues.  “Whoa now Captain, I don’t have to be jealous do I?”

Jack grinned, “I just call ‘em as I see ‘em.  But seriously, Doc:  Jackie Tyler.  She’s gonna be your mother-in-law!”

John laughed feeling better than he had in weeks.  “Ooooooh don’t remind me!  You’re tarnishing my silver lining.”

“Silver lining?  What’s the cloud?”

“I actually like being Duke.”

 

That night John escaped his nightmares.  He fell asleep thinking how he would tell Rose his discovery and plan and how happy she would be.  It was the best Christmas present he could think of.  Well, almost the best...definitely in the top three...make that four....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A brief chapter...a respite if you will before the next big, bad, bold move...


	19. Stolen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry executes his plan. John comes back early. Missy provides a valuable clue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: this is a longer chapter. Too much goings on!

It was the Winter Solstice and Harry had simply run out of time and options.  Whatever relationship he had managed to build with Rose Tyler had to be capitalized upon now.

There was a quick rap on the backdoor as Rose came down the stairs.  She’d had another restless night.  The wolves were howling up on the mountain. Christmas was days away and still not a single word from John.  Even a smuggled blossom of blue Forget-me-not, would have eased her tension.  She’d half hoped when he gave her the book on flowers that he would use them to send her messages, but it seemed only Harry had taken a page from that chivalrous tradition.

Perhaps this clean break was for the best, but she couldn’t quite let go.  The unexpected early visitor had her rushing to the door with a foolishly hopeful heart.

Oh.  “Harry?” 

He shouldered his way inside.  “Hurry,” he said in a low voice.  “John wants to see you.”

“Now?”

“Now.  Come on, I’ve come to get you.”

Excited with the sudden surprise, Rose reached for her winter cape but Harry stopped her.  “No, not that; here wear this,” from behind his back he produced a long cloak with a deep fur trimmed hood.  “You mustn’t be recognized.  Make sure you tuck all your hair away under the hood and hide your face.

Rose drew the strange cape around her.  It fell all the way to her toes in dark, heavy folds of fine wool. “I should tell mum...”

“Shh!  No, this must be done in absolute secret.  No one can know...at least, not yet,” Harry smiled encouragingly and the suggestion of hope surged through her.  Perhaps there would be a Christmas miracle after all! She nodded.

“Keep the hood up and your head down,” he instructed as they hurried along.  He grasped her elbow through the cloak to steer her.

“Where are we going?”

“Some place private.  Now no talking in case you are overheard and your voice is recognized.”

For many minutes they sped along in silence.  All Rose could see was the path directly before her, but this was her home town and she knew all the streets and alleys by heart.  She wondered where John was meeting her and why all the cloak and dagger secrecy.  Her heart pounded from the brisk pace and the excitement.  Oh, how she had missed him!

Suddenly she noticed a change in the path and her stomach gave a nervous flip.  They had strayed into the seedier part of town.  She couldn’t imagine John wanting her to meet him here.  Rose came to a sudden stop.  “Where are you taking me?” she demanded suspiciously lifting her head to look around.

Harry turned her to face him and drew her hands out from the cloak.  He leaned down and stared at her intently.  “Do you trust me?”

Rose’s eyes widened at such a question and then narrowed as she achieved clarity.  Harry was clever and charming and obsessively attentive.  He listened intently to anything she wanted to share with him and in return had distracted her with entertaining tales that told her nothing about his true self.  He’d spent hours in her company but never once spent time with her mother or her friends.  He’d always behaved just inside the parameters of the perfect model gentleman but at the same time clearly let her know he wanted much more.  In that moment Rose knew she could not trust him.

“And there it is.”  Before she could react, he’d snapped metal bracelets to her wrists that were linked to each other with a short chain.  “You should have lied to me; you might have had a better chance.”

“What are you doing?” Rose cried out, tugging at her bonds.

“Shhhh!”  He clapped a hand over her mouth.  She struggled and tried to stomp on his foot, but he easily side stepped her.  “Oh no, my dear you don’t get to do that twice.”

Too late Rose realized it would have failed anyway.  In her headlong rush to meet John, she’d neglected to trade her house slippers for her walking boots, and now she’d lost one slipper in her struggle with Harry.

Slowly Harry took his hand off her mouth, but her lips were still sealed.  Somehow he’s palmed some sort of sticky tape that was now pressed to her face.  She let out a muffled scream in frustration.

“Fight me anymore and I’ll knock you out.  Believe me in this neighbourhood no one will look twice if I just carry you over my shoulder.”  Fear leeched any resistance out of her.  He tucked her cuffed hands back inside the cloak and tugged the hood back into position.  The solicitous grip on her elbow was replaced by a strong arm tight about her waist.  He hurried his prisoner along.

 

The Doctor sauntered down the street whistling tunelessly.  It was terribly early, he knew.  He’d travelled all night and left Wilfred sound asleep in their quarters.  He’d taken a room at an inn instead of his usual rooms at the Citadel because he didn’t want his parents to know he’d come back to town early.  He wanted to talk to Rose first about his plans and then present his plea.  Rumour had it from a good source that Harry and River would announce their engagement tonight.  Jack and Donna were primed and set to announce John’s betrayal and demand their courtship broken off.  All he needed was to see her first.

The first shiver of dread came when he saw Jackie standing outside the shop, distress on her face.  He picked up his pace and was running before he knew it.

“John!” Jackie cried.  “Thank the gods, you’ve come!”

“What’s wrong?  Where’s Rose?”

“I don’t know!  She came down first this morning, but the fire’s cold.  Her cape and boots are still on the peg at the back door.  I thought maybe she popped next door to the bakery for some breakfast croissants, but I just came from there.  They never saw her!”

John steered Jackie inside the shop before she attracted a crowd.  “Jackie, think!  Could she have gone anywhere else?  Did she leave a note?”

“No note!  And in these temperatures she’d never go anywhere without her proper cape and boots.”

“Did she say anything yesterday or last night about going somewhere?  How has she been lately?”  John fought to keep his voice neutral but the dread was building exponentially.

Jackie shook her head.  “No, no.  Everything’s been the same.  Of course she’s been pining, but she’d got on with life too.”  Jackie grabbed at his coat sleeve.  “All I can think is that Rose has been taken!”

“Have you noticed anyone hanging around lately?”  Jimmy Stone’s face flashed across his mind.  Jack had pulled off his watchful friends once Jimmy had been jailed, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t escaped custody.  Revenge would be an easy motive for him.

“No nobody!  It’s just been the usual customers.”  Missy the kitten ran into the store complaining loudly that she had not yet had her breakfast.  “Oh, you poor thing!”  Jackie scooped up the cat, “Didn’t Rose feed you before she disappeared?”

“When did you get a cat?”

“Just last week.  She said your friend Harry had found this stray and gave it to her, said it would be a good mouser for the shop.  It’s been kind of him to watch over Rose for you.”

 _Harry!_    John felt drop kicked in the stomach.  He was under no illusions as to the dark side of his erstwhile friend’s character and he was now certain that Harry was involved.  All their lives Harry had been competitive with him and harboured thinly veiled jealousy against him.  If Harry had learned how he felt about Rose... John felt bitter bile rise in the back of his throat; while he’d kept himself away, he’d left Rose vulnerable to his twisted tricks!

“I’m going to look for Rose and you stay here in case she comes back.  Whoever finds her first will send a runner to get the message back to the other, agreed?”

“Agreed.  Oh John, where would she go?  She only ever works and goes to market.  She’s got no other family, no friends until school’s out again...”  Jackie sniffled.  Her poor daughter’s life was pathetic and her not even sixteen...

“I’ll find her Jackie,” the Doctor vowed.

 

Harry shoved her into the room.  Its cramped quarters held only two pieces of furniture, a chaise lounge and a wrought iron bed.  Both were draped in rich velvets and furs that clashed with the shabby walls and worn floor.  “I don’t spend much time here but it serves my purpose.”

Rose shuddered.  She could easily imagine what purpose the room had. This was the tavern she’d caught Harry leaving that day, the one where he’d said he had a little business meeting.  Now Rose had another clue as to what type of business.  No one had said a word to them when they walked in and Harry had pushed her straightway up a narrow back staircase.

“By now you’ve figured out this is not a rendezvous with your darling Doctor.”  Harry turned the key in the door.  “Tonight River and I will be engaged.  In a few months she will be my loving wife, the perfect public figure on which to continue to build the Saxon dynasty.  You, my dear Rose, will be my mistress, the perfect private figure on which to release all my excess...energies.  I’ve come to learn that one woman is never enough to satisfy my needs.”

Rose was shaking her head furiously in denial.  Never, ever would she submit to this!  She stumbled back away from him until her legs hit the chaise.  Too late she realized her mistake as she tumbled backwards tangled in the cloak and without the use of her hands for balance.

Harry leaned over her, enjoying the view.  “Well, aren’t you the eager one!”  Rose tried to roll away but his knee was on the cloak effectively pinning her.  She thrashed about as best she could, but he only chuckled coldly.  He held her hands down and undid the cloak clasp, pushing the fabric away.  Slowly he trailed his other hand down the side of her face, her throat and across her breasts as she whimpered behind the tape.  He liked how her eyes were dilating with fear.

“I’d love to explore more, but I have a very busy few hours ahead of me.  Now you are going to stay here and be a good little girl.  If you’re thinking of banging around trying to get someone’s attention, don’t bother.  They are quite used to hearing all manner of noises coming from this room and I pay them very well to turn a deaf ear.”

He stood up and towered over her.  “If you are a very, very good girl I will let you have something to eat and drink when I return.  I’d like you to keep your strength up,” he winked.  “But if I have to starve you into submission, believe me I will.”

He paused at the door.  “You will stay in this room until tomorrow.  Then I will take you back with me to Saxony for Christmas and there you will keep me company until my wedding night.  If you please me I will set you up in a nice apartment of your own.  If you don’t please me then I will set you up in a room like this and let other men pay me for the privilege of visiting you.  Accept it, Rose Tyler, your life is over.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I mapped out this story I did NOT plan on this being a weekend cliffie...sorry, well sort of...


	20. Accept It, Rose Tyler

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose tries to escape her prison and Harry's parting words batter at her mind.

As soon as the key turned in the lock, Rose sat up and was trying to peel the tape off her mouth.  It was very painful, but she was determined and at last she was free of at least that restraint.  Her cheeks stung and her lips were chaffed raw so she let that pain be the reason for her tears.

 

Next she struggled with the cuffs.  She tugged, trying to force her hand through, but Harry had chosen very small bracelets.  The metal only dug into her skin.  Brushing away tears, she could make out a fine seam where they snapped together but pull and twist as she might they held fast.  She ran her sensitive lips over the surface looking for some kind of trigger or button but the cold metal yielded up no clues as to how they could be released.  _At least they’re fastened in front of me,_ she thought.  She had to keep trying to find something positive so as not to slip into hysterical despair. _“Accept it, Rose Tyler, your life is over.”_

 

 

She looked around the room, her eyes skittering quickly past the bed and then she saw a window covered with a dingy lace curtain.  Perhaps she could open the window and climb out or call out for help.  Maybe there would be a police patrol.  She hurried to the window and pulled back the drape.  Her view was of a blank wall across the way.  She faced the alley not the street.   She tried to open the window but it was painted shut and no amount of scratching or shoving budged it.  She looked about the room to find something with which to break the glass, but there was nothing.  Again she was reminded that she’d left her sturdy walking boots at home. _“Accept it, Rose Tyler, your life is over.”_

 

Her eyes fell upon a narrow door, perhaps a closet.  Hoping to find something with which to break the window or pick the lock, she twisted the handle but the door did not open.  As she worked at the door she thought she faintly heard metal clanking.  Hopeful, she tugged harder and jiggled the knob but it was locked.  The sound she was hearing finally registered: chains.  There were chains hanging on the inside of that door.  Horrified, Rose backed away. 

Her hip struck the edge of the bed and she noticed the strange hitching rings welded to four bed posts.  Curious, her eyes travelled over the worn frame, noticing dents and gouges and places where the paint had been worn away. Was this a bed or a torture rack?  In her situation Rose couldn’t tell the difference. _“Accept it, Rose Tyler, your life is over.”_

 

 

Rose fled back to the window. For a few minutes she looked up at the thin sliver of sky.  It was fully daylight now.  Her mum would know she was missing but what clues would she have for finding her?  She worried about Jackie: she would be so afraid and distraught for her with no one to turn to for help.  There was Fred the grocer, but what could he do?  The police patrol would only start looking after a day had passed and then only if there was evidence of foul play.  After all, Rose was fifteen; she was considered an adult in the eyes of the law.  People her age left home all the time and it was certainly not a crime.  _“Accept it, Rose Tyler, your life is over.”_

 

Rose craned her neck next in the other direction and tried to see down into the alleyway.  If she spotted someone she decided she’d smash the window with her fists.  No doubt she’d cut herself but she didn’t care.  No one was coming to save her.  If she was going to get out of this, it was up to her.

 

Time passed and Rose saw no one.  Left alone she battled with her thoughts and emotions.  She was frightened of Harry and how cruel he had become.  She was furious with herself for being duped into thinking he was a friend.  Hadn’t Jimmy taught her anything? How had she not seen the signs?  Conversations and actions replayed through her mind showing her all the little things that should have warned her off.  _“Accept it, Rose Tyler, your life is over.”_

 

 

She was heartsick over her situation.  The longer she stayed here the worse her chances were. She was such a gullible and stupid, stupid girl.  Maybe this was the fate she deserved.  Who was she to think she could rise above her station and rub elbows with royalty?  Who was she to fall in love with one of them?  No wonder Harry could look at her like so much trash.  _“Accept it, Rose Tyler, your life is over.”_

 

Rose leaned her head against the dirty glass and let the tears fall.  But she wasn’t one for self-pity and before too long she scrubbed at her eyes with her battered hands.  Crying wasn’t going to help her.  Anxiously she looked at the sun’s shadow, marking the passage of time.  If no one had appeared in the alley by the time the sun reached...there...then she was going to smash out the window and take her chances climbing out even with her hands tied.  Her bare feet, for she’d deliberately lost the other shoe coming up to the tavern, would give her a better chance of grip if there was any to be had. 

 

Could she fall to her death from the third storey?  Did it matter?  “Harry already said my life is over.”


	21. Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No property was damaged in the escape. A pair of blue slippers help the Doctor on his hunt.

John hid his terror from Jackie, but he couldn’t keep it from adding wings to his feet as he rushed off in search of Rose.  After a block or so he forced himself to slow down.  He had to think this through.  Running all over town would only waste precious time.  Based on what Jackie had said Harry – for he was absolutely certain he was behind this – had no more than two hours start on him.  Plus Harry didn’t know he was here or that he was coming any sooner than Christmas Eve, so Harry shouldn’t feel pressured into moving too quickly.  In fact, John was sickeningly certain Harry would take as much time as he could.  He’d once watched Harry take 30 minutes to pull the wings of a fly.  (John had had to watch because in their childhood game of saints and martyrs, he’d been the martyr left tied to the flag pole.) 

Duke Saxony would be making the big engagement announcement tonight and Harry and River would have to be present, therefore he couldn’t leave town until at least morning.  He would have had to stash Rose somewhere in town.  Unless he had an accomplice who could take her away... no, he would discard that theory for the time being.  There was no need to paralyze himself with despair. 

So...if he was Harry where would he keep her?

John set out with long purposeful strides.  Harry had been known to frequent a particular part of town for his more risqué adventures.  He’d have friends there, maybe a particular haunt.  The Doctor was on the hunt.

As he thought through the puzzle, a strange calmness came over him and his mind became razor sharp.  They’d left in a hurry because Rose hadn’t taken the time to change her footwear.  Rose had left her cape behind but it was winter, so Harry must have supplied one, probably as a disguise to keep from being identified.  He also would have kept to back streets and alleys so as not to be seen.  The Doctor modified his course.

Suddenly he spied a lady’s blue slipper in the gutter.  It was Rose’s!  He remembered her wearing them about the shop.  Thoughtfully he picked it up and brushed off the dirt before putting it in his pocket.   How did she come to lose her shoe?  Did if fall off because they were going too fast? Had she kicked it off intentionally, hoping someone would be looking for her and find it?  Or had she struggled and fought her captor and lost it in the process? 

He growled in the back of his throat at the thought that she’d had to walk down the cold street with a bare foot.  “At least I know she came this way,” he muttered.

John began to look more closely at the buildings. Which one held Rose?  Where would Harry have put her?  He’d have to leave her for at least part of the day, so it would have to be someplace secure, probably surrounded by people he trusted not to give her aid.

His gaze fell on _The Crooked Step_ , a disreputable tavern he knew Harry had frequented in the past.  As he considered the possibility, he eye caught a flash of blue in the midst of gray trash.  The other shoe!  Now he was confident that Rose had left clues to her whereabouts.  His brilliant and brave Rose!

 

John burst into the tavern ready to fight off any guards Harry had in place.  The bartender looked up at him with an arched brow.  He flicked his toothpick from one side of his mouth to the other and kept wiping the mug in his hands.  John scanned the rest of the room.  Very few tables were occupied as it was early morning yet and all was quiet.

"I’m looking for someone,” John spoke at the bartender.

The bartender gave him the once over, “They’re not here.”

“How do you know who I’m looking for?”

“You’re type doesn’t come around here.”

“One does.”

“He’s not here.”

“What about his companion?  He had a lady with him, didn’t he?”

The bartender kept wiping the mug.

“I know she was here.  What I want to know is if she’s here now.”

The bartender didn’t react, except to flick his toothpick upwards.

John tapped the bar, spun on his heels and took the stairs two at a time.  On his way up he reasoned that Harry would want Rose as far away from the others as possible.  That meant top floor.  He bounded along the landing and climbed higher.

At the top of the stairs he paused to study the hallway.  He was pleased to note that his extreme fencing lessons had paid off: he wasn’t winded at all even though his heart pounded with adrenaline.  Four doors opened off the hall on each side.  Rapidly the Doctor calculated the probability of which door concealed Rose.  He eliminated the rooms that faced the street on the front side of the tavern – it would be too risky that she could attract attention from a window. He strode quickly down the hall.  The furthest from the stairs would seem the most secure.

He jiggled the handle and naturally it was locked.  He listened carefully.  “Rose?” he called softly.  “Can you hear me Rose?  Are you in there?”

There was the sound of movement and then a scared voice answered, “John?  Oh John is that really you?”

“Yes, love.  I’m getting you out of there.”  He pushed his shoulder against the door, but it was thick and sturdy.  “Hang on... I’ll be right back.”  Much as he loathed leaving her, he had nothing with him to break down a stout wooden door.

 

Back in the taproom he boldly approached the bartender.  “You have something of mine,” he stated flatly.

The bartender carefully set down his mug and towel.  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.  I’ve never seen you before.”

“And you never want to see me again.  Give me your skeleton key.”  He held out his hand.

John could hear some shuffling and shifting behind him.  He didn’t know if people were getting out of the way, or preparing to get into trouble.  “Look, I only want what’s upstairs in Room 308.  Believe me, whatever he’s paying you it’s not nearly enough if you try and stop me.  This is your final warning: give me the key or I will shut you down permanently, and not just in this town but in any town in the three realms.”

Whatever the bartender saw in John’s face, it was enough for him to switch his loyalty.  Slowly he placed the key in his outstretched hand.  “I never saw you here.”

“Of course not!”  John grinned and ran back up stairs.

He skidded to a stop at Room 308 and hastily unlocked the door.  He pushed it open and was immediately pushed back out into the hall by Rose rushing at him.  They slammed up against the opposite door by her momentum.  He wrapped steadying arms about shaking her form.  “Oooof!  Hey now, its okay, its okay,” he soothed.  “I’ve got you, its okay.”


	22. Rose Gentles the Oncoming Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They tell Jackie a cover story. Rose gets the promise she'd dreamed of.

Slowly John eased Rose off of him.  The door handle of Room 307 was digging uncomfortably into his kidney. He needed to get her out of here before Harry returned or the fellows below stairs changed their minds.  “Are you alright?”

She nodded hastily.  “Yes, yes!  I can’t believe you’re here!  John, you’ve saved me twice now!”

“Always,” he promised.  He looked at the cuffs on her hands as they were pressed to his chest.  “Magnetic closure,” he observed.  He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small box which he placed over a cuff and pressed a switch.  The cuff sprang apart.  He repeated this with the second cuff and they fell to the floor.

“How did you?” she marvelled rubbing the circulation back into her hands.

“They’re magnetic.  I simply reversed the polarity.”  The Doctor put away his gadget and scooped up the cuffs off the floor and pocketed them as well.  Next he pulled out her shoes from his other pocket and held them up.  “These belong to you?”

“You found them!”

He knelt down. “Yes, they were excellent clues.  You know,” he looked up at her from his knees as he slid on one shoe, “I feel a bit like the prince in Cinderella.”

“You’re my prince,” Rose said shyly, her heart in her eyes.

“Yes, I am,” he rose to his feet.  He reached to take her hands in his but saw the bruising and rawness on her wrists.  “It was Harry, wasn’t it?  Harry did this to you!”  His anger drove all thoughts of romance from his mind. 

Ashamed, Rose nodded.  She felt like such a fool.

He strode into her cell to retrieve whatever disguise Harry had used so she could be kept warm.  He took in the furnishings in the room, his eye for detail noticing all Rose had seen and more, and his rage mounted. Snatching up the cloak, he returned to her and swiftly settled it around her shoulders.  “I am taking you home and then I am going to kill him.”

Rose grabbed his arm.  “No John, you can’t!  You can’t have his blood on your hands, I won’t let you.”

“Rose he is the worst kind of villain!”  Fire snapped from his dark eyes and his jaw was clenched tight.

“Then I am the worst kind of fool!  I won’t let you throw your life away on him or on me!”  Rose tentatively touched the jerking muscle in his cheek.  “Please, don’t let him ruin your life.”

Her soft touch broke him and tears blurred his vision.  “He tried to ruin yours,” he ground out before he sobbed and pulled her close.  He buried his face in her neck, curling his long frame around her petite one.  “I thought I’d lost you,” he gasped knowing now that he could never let her go or set her aside.  Not for a duchy, not for a king. If he appeal was denied they would flee the country altogether.  “I thought I’d lost you.”

“But you didn’t,” she whispered, her lips caressed his ear.  “Harry didn’t do anything to me except scare me out of my wits.  Please, can we just go home now?”

He straightened and gave her a crooked smile.  The shock of all that had transpired in those few hours and the dire thoughts of what he assumed would have happened if he hadn’t found her left him weak in the knees.  They wrapped a supportive arm around each other and walked down the hall.

They discussed what they would and would not tell Jackie about the adventure. John suggested they could say Harry wanted to hold her for ransom to pay off his gambling debts.  Jackie couldn’t afford it, but he certainly could and would have paid anything for her safe return.  Rose readily agreed, not wanting to talk about what Harry had really told her; John was angry enough and her poor mom would certainly have a heart attack.  Once they had their story straight, they didn’t speak again on their trip back, but every so often one or the other would hug a little tighter. 

 

Jackie rushed them as they came in the door.  First she grabbed Rose and kissed her then she grabbed John and kissed him, then she grabbed Rose again.  “You’re safe!  You’re safe” she kept repeating.

While Jackie fussed over Rose, the Doctor carefully locked the door and pulled the shades.  The Emporium would be closed to business that day.

“What happened?  Where did you get this cloak; it’s gorgeous.” Jackie stroked the fur trim.

Rose pushed the cloak into her arms.  “I never want to see that thing again.” 

“What’s going on, sweetheart?”

“Let’s go upstairs,” John suggested.

 

Once they were all around the table, John and Rose gave their story of how Harry had abducted her and why. “I’ll rip his smug face off!” she exclaimed.  “Who does he think he is?  I’ll have him charged!”

“No mum!” Rose tried to calm her although she was still pretty upset herself. “It too late, John saved me before any ransom note could be delivered.  I can’t prove anything and it would just be my word against a royal’s.”  She glanced apologetically to John.   “He’ll just turn this around and make it all my fault, like I was stalking him or something.”

“But he stole you away!”

“Rose is right.  The police will do nothing, but I can.”

Rose stared at him worriedly.  “John, I’m nobody.  You can’t be mixed up in this.”

“Harry did this to hurt me through you.  I know that might sound arrogant, like the world revolves around me, but it’s always been his way.  Harry has always hated me for being the king’s son.  He knew how I feel about you and wanted to twist that around to his advantage.  You were to be his weapon.”  _As well as his toy,_ but he didn’t say that aloud, not in front of Jackie.

“But I thought you were all friends.  That first day in the shop...”

“It’s complicated.  But I blame myself for not warning you about him.”

“No, you can’t blame yourself.  I’m a lousy judge of men – present company excepted. I should have seen how he was trying to manipulate me.”

“You were lonely and lovesick.  He took advantage of you, sweetheart,” Jackie interrupted. 

Rose wiped away a tear and the Doctor’s anger flared again.  Harry was a menace Rose should never have had to deal with.  “I will protect you, Rose, I swear.”  When he intercepted Jackie’s scoff, he argued.  “No, really, I’ve found a way.”  He had hoped to share his plan with Rose in private first, but his gob had got ahead of him yet again.

He explained to them how there was a way for them to be together forever and that he was more than willing to give up his heritage for their love.  Rose protested that it was too much, that his duchy needed him, and that she wasn’t worth it.  The Doctor was adamant she was worth everything.

Jackie threw up her hands at the emotional roundabout of self sacrifice.  “You two idiots deserve each other!” she pronounced, standing up and hugging them both.  “I know I said yours was a young love and that given time it might fade.  I can see now I had it wrong.  Rose, sweetheart, can’t you see he’s dying here thinking you’re rejecting him?  And John, hun, she’s a bit thick, but she’ll come around to it.  You are an amazing man and I’ll be very proud to call you son-in-law.”

“Mum!” Rose blushed.  No one had talked about marriage.  They hadn’t even shared a kiss yet.

Tracking her thoughts, the Doctor turned her face towards him.  He stared deeply into her whiskey coloured eyes, desperately wishing they were alone so he could kiss her.  “I love you and I will propose, Rose Marion Tyler,” he promised.  “As soon as I know I’m a free man, I will ask you to be my wife.”  He caressed her pink cheek with the pad of his thumb.  “All I ask now is you trust me and wait for me.” 


	23. First Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How Harry, the Doctor, Rose and Jackie spent the afternoon.

Harry was beyond furious when he discovered Rose was gone.  He felt briefly better after he’d beaten the bartender to a pulp and had chased everyone else out of the tavern with a broken whiskey bottle.  He knew he’d lost control and he felt the first flickers of foreboding.  Again he had miscalculated.  How could he have anticipated John coming back to town early?  How had he not noticed whatever breadcrumbs Rose had used to lead him to her rescue?  How had he trusted such lowlife characters with her safe keeping?  And why, oh why had River insisted on keeping him with her all morning while she chose a stupid gown for tonight’s announcement?

He should have at least kissed her while he had the chance, maybe even a quick grope and fumble.  That would have been a tiny victory in this debacle.  There was nothing for it; she was well and away from his clutches now.  Dearest daddy would have to find another way to get his sick revenge on the Tylers.   But he’d say nothing to him about all this until after tonight.  No sense in spoiling the party.

For the rest of the afternoon Harry found himself looking over his shoulder.  Any minute he expected to be arrested or at least jumped on by John and probably his sidekick Jack.   If the tables had been reversed, he knew what he would have done.  Assassins could be around any corner.  

As the afternoon faded into evening his guilty paranoia became deep annoyance.  Goodie-goodie bookworm John wasn’t going to do anything.  How could he?  There was no proof.  He’d wasted a perfectly good afternoon feeling uncomfortable for no reason.

 

John stayed as long as possible at the Tyler’s.  He couldn’t get enough of being near Rose.  His hands had a mind of their own and he was constantly touching her: he held her hand, he played with her hair, his fingers doodled on her sleeve.  Unconsciously he was learning what pleased her most and he was cataloguing it away.  He studiously ignored the purpling bruises on her wrists or the chafing of her lips as they only served to remind him of his simmering anger.  He didn’t want to spoil this oasis of peace before the storm. 

They talked about what would happen after he abdicated and they married.  He shared his desire to be a teacher and speculated on what subjects he’d enjoy teaching and where he could get a position.  Rose thought that the Academy would be crazy not to hire him, but John was sceptical of his reception as an abdicated royal.  Jackie wanted to keep them close, but also saw the wisdom of getting away.  Perhaps they could all move?  It wasn’t as if they couldn’t set up shop elsewhere.  Rose confessed that she’d always wanted to travel.

Then the conversation shifted to some of his ideas for inventions.  Jackie’s eyes glazed over as he rambled on about things she had no understanding of.  Once in awhile he’d say something particularly wild or fantastical that would capture her attention, but if she made a comment or asked a question the other two would stare at her as if she’d dribbled on her shirt.  Obviously she was missing more than she was hearing, so after awhile she found reasons to leave them alone with their mad talk.

“I going downstairs for a bit,” Jackie announced, “but I want your word as a gentleman that you’ll not leave this room while I’m gone.”  Their apartment consisted of the open kitchen, dining and sitting area, their two bedrooms and the bath.  Yes they had a good plan for how to be together and yes she had given her blessing but that didn’t mean they could put the cart before the horse.  Things could still go wrong.

“Mum!”  Rose was mortified.

“Not even to use the loo, Mrs Tyler?”  John’s ears were turning red, but his eyes twinkled.

“The loo’s allowed,” Jackie amended with a huff.  “You know what I mean!”

“Yes ma’am.  Your daughter is safe with me.”

“Harrumph.  But are you safe with her?”  Jackie retorted, laughing at her daughter’s inarticulate sounds of embarrassment.  She descended the stairs.

Alone at last the young people smiled shyly at each other.

John was the first to move, reaching for Rose’s hand and tugging her to her feet.  “I really only have a few more minutes and then I must go.  Wilfred is waiting for me back at the inn.  I need to fill him in on what’s happened and then we need to make our surprise appearance at the Winter Solstice supper.”

Rose smoothed the lapel of his suit and touched his silk tie, liking the texture of the fine fabric under her finger tips.  “Promise me something?” she looked up at him earnestly.

He looped his arms about her waist drawing her closer. “Anything.”

“Don’t risk yourself with Harry.  You’re acting all calm and attentive but I know you’re really, really angry.  So am I, but I couldn’t stand it if something happened to you.  He’s terribly dangerous.”

“I’ll be careful, I promise.  But Harry can’t be allowed to get away with what happened.”

“I know, I just – “

“Promise me something?”

“Anything.”

“Promise me you won’t get tired of me, that my title and my rank mean nothing to you and you’ll love me just the same when I am poor, without family or home.”

“I can’t promise you that.”  He stiffened so she was quick to explain.  “I promise I will never tire of you, that your title and rank mean nothing and I will love you just the same when you are poor.” She paused to smile softly, “But you will never be without family or home.  You have me.”

“Then I have everything.”  He tilted up her chin slightly and slowly lowered his head, clearly indicating his intentions.  He wanted their first kiss.

Rose stared up at him trustingly, her hands gripping his shoulders and then as his breath ghosted her face, she closed her eyes and surrendered to his leading.

Gently John touched her lips, ever mindful of their chapped and tender state.  The last thing he wanted, especially from their very first kiss, was to cause her any discomfort.  At nearly twenty, he had kissed a few girls before (more than just the Donna-trauma), but this kiss was in a whole new category of experiences.  True love made the moment magical. 

A tingling buzz began where they touched and spread throughout his body.  Suddenly everything outside of their immediate proximity fell away and it was as if they were two souls flying up through the clouds into the sky and beyond.  His arms tightened, drawing her up and closer.  He needed to hold on or else he would fly apart into atoms.  Tentatively he increased the pressure on her mouth and Rose responded eagerly.

She gripped his shoulders tighter and arched into him, rising up on her tip toes to give as good as she was getting.  It might be her first kiss, but no one would ever say she wasn’t an exceptionally quick learner.  The painful tenderness of her abused face melted away with the warm pleasure of his loving lips.  If a kiss could truly “make it better”, then this was exactly how it was done.

When they broke apart for air, they grinned at each other, loving shining in their eyes.

“Wow,” John cleared his throat and repeated, “Wow.”

Rose giggled, “Yeah, exactly.  Can we do that again?”


	24. Show Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Harry can't keep their hostility hidden. Fists and accusations fly.

Wilfred glanced at John beside him.  They stood just outside the doors to the palace apartments waiting to be announced.  He’d seen a change come over John this past year, a natural one as the lad matured into manhood, but today the shift was more pronounced.  The misadventures of the day had chiseled away the boy.  Next to him stood a man, ready to take what he wanted in this life and uphold the values and beliefs he had decided were true.  Wilfred had never been more proud or more worried.

 

“John!  Wildred!  What a pleasant surprise!  We didn’t expect to see you until the 24th,” his mother exclaimed rising from her chair and embracing first her son and then her brother-in-law.  “It is so wonderful to see you.  Wilfred, it’s been much too long since you left Smyth for a visit.”

His father stepped forward and greeted them with that awkward manly hug few men ever perfect.  “Son...Brother...How nice to have you here early.”  His eyes asked the question as to the deviation of agenda.

“I shall have your rooms made ready immediately,” his mother rang a small silver bell.  “You are just in time for the Winter Solstice Supper.  Just a small gathering but an important one as Saxony has an important announcement to make.”  She looked hopefully at her son, wondering when he would bless her with a similar announcement.  A servant appeared at her elbow and she relayed her instructions quietly.

“We have time for short drink,” the King offered.  “You must be parched from your travels.”  Again he hinted for more information. 

Wilfred nodded, “A drink would be welcome.”

John shook his head.  He wanted to keep his wits about him.  Right now, his senses were on high alert and he wanted to keep them that way.

A servant presented Wilfred a crystal tumbler with a finger of dark amber liquid.  Wilfred tossed it back in one gulp and the Queen blinked in surprise. Wilfred was not one to usually drink excessively.

Everyone in the room was accustomed to the currents of intrigue that constantly swirled about the throne; obviously this was more than just an early family visit. But before anyone could ask or offer information, the butler announced, “The guests have all assembled, your majesties.”  As they prepared to move to the dining hall, the Queen made a quick suggestion, “I know it’s against protocol, but since this is just an informal supper, let us go in ahead of you.  Then everyone will get the greater surprise.”

John’s smiled was wolfish, “Brilliant, mother.”

 

Their surprise arrival sent a ripple through the gathering and had servants scurrying to set an extra two at the table.  When everyone had taken their seats, John was darkly pleased that he was directly across from Harry.  He didn’t have a plan as to just how he would call out his old friend, but for now he liked the idea of skewering him with his glare.

“Wilfred, you are looking very well,” remarked River having failed to get John to acknowledge her.  If his anger was over their engagement, River was flattered and pleased, but no longer interested.  She sat next to Harry and looked regally elegant in a burnished gold satin gown.  The candlelight reflected off the two karat diamond ring on her hand as she picked up her napkin to place in her lap.  “I suppose life is much easier now that John is taking on more of his responsibilities.”

“You make me sound old and feeble.  I’m no older than him,” he nodded toward the King at the head of table.  Indeed Wilfred was the younger, by almost four minutes.  “But yes my dear, it has been good to see John moving into his rightful role.  He’s turned into a remarkable man.”

“Most remarkable,” murmured Harry into his plate.  How he had found Rose and rescued her was still amazing, even while equally infuriating.  It continued to gall how the Doctor could do no wrong.

The servants presented the first course, a clear soup that hinted of mint and citrus.  Conversation flowed freely around the table except between Harry and John.  They sat as silent as rocks, shooting daggers with their eyes at each other.  Gradually the tension between them registered with the other guests.  River tried valiantly to keep up appearances but eventually even she succumbed to the tension and fell silent.  River huffed.  Whatever was wrong had better be really important because she was going to have words with them as soon as was politely possible.

By the time the servants had cleared away the empty salad plates the room was far from celebratory.  The King was frowning at the two young men who seemed determined to spoil the night.  The Queen tapped the Duke of Saxony on the wrist and nodded encouragingly.

“Ahem,” the Duke began and rose to his feet. All eyes turned his way. “The King and Queen have graciously agreed to share their winter solstice celebrations with my important announcement.”  He singled out Harry and River with a proud smiling gaze.  “I am very pleased to announce to you the first engagement of the season:  my Harry to the beautiful River Song.”

There was polite applause and those next to the couple expressed personal congratulations.  The Duke raised his glass, “To the happy couple!”

“To the happy couple!” the room resounded.

John did not raise his glass.  He couldn’t wish them well.  As bold and strong as River might be, she didn’t know what kind of monster she was binding herself to.  He longed to have a heart to heart with her before it was too late.

Harry sneered at him, ready to poke the bear, “What’s wrong, old friend?  Jealous?”

Without thinking John tossed his glass of wine in his smirking face.

Prepared, Harry threw his fork.  John ducked and the tines buried themselves in the high back of his chair.  With a growl, John launched himself at Harry.  Dishes, cutlery and flowers went flying.  His momentum knocked Harry backwards and they both landed on the floor, hands at each other’s throats.

People jumped to their feet, screaming and shouting.  The King bellowed and guards rushed in to separate the combatants.

“What is the meaning of this?” demanded the King.

“Perhaps we should go somewhere more private, Alistair?” suggested the Queen.

“No,” John shrugged off the restraining hands.  “You need to know what kind of person you are toasting tonight.”  He looked hard at River.  “You need to know most of all, River.”

The Duke pushed his way to his son.  “What are you talking about?  You’re the one who insulted and attacked.  Why I’ve a good mind to call you out.”

“Dueling is illegal,” Wilfred interjected.  “Besides, this is between them.”  He gave Harry his own dark look.

“I am still waiting for an explanation,” the King reminded them.  He looked to his son who had been a tightly coiled spring all evening.

“Harry is guilty of kidnapping and forcible confinement.”  Shocked gasps and murmurs filled the room.

Harry rolled his eyes.  “You’re drunk.  I can assure everyone I am not holding anyone against their will.  And even if I was, I should at least get some credit: kidnapping is a lot harder than you would think; killing was only ever Option C.”

The young men were restrained again but this time the struggle was short.

“What did you do, Harry?” demanded River. 

“There’s nothing for you to worry about, my dear.  Nothing to worry about at all, since he has no evidence for his vile words,” Harry was challenging John.

“John, you can’t go around accusing people without evidence.”

“Oh, there’s evidence all right,” growled John.  He pulled the handcuffs from his pocket and threw them on the table.

Harry barked out a laugh.  “What are those?  I’ve never seen them before.”

“You used those to restrain her and you know it.”

“Prove it!  Do they have my name on them?  Toys like that are a dime a dozen!”

“Who is this woman you refer to John?  Where is she?  I demand to see her and know the truth,” said the King.

“The truth?  Is not my word truth enough, father?”

“Not this time, my son.  You are making very serious accusations of one of your royal peers.”

Harry puffed out his chest.  “That’s right, Johnny-boy.  Your peer, so just remember that and get down off your high horse.  Nothing happened.”  To the rest of the crowd he said, “I was a bad boy.  I’m sorry.  No harm no foul.”

“No harm?” John was incredulous.  “You terrified and traumatized a perfectly innocent – “

“Innocent?  She’s been teasing and leading me on for weeks!  How can you be sure she didn’t want what I had to offer?”

John evaded the guards and swung a fist at his face.  Harry blocked the blow and landed one of his own in John’s stomach.

“Enough!” roared the King.  “I can see that emotions are out of control.  Perhaps a few hours arrest will cool you down!”

“Alistair!  You can’t arrest your own son!”

“Of course I can!  I’m not throwing him in the dungeon, Sarah Jane.  This is just until we send everyone else home and sort this mess out.”  He waved for the guards to drag off John and Harry.  “And before you say anything, Davros, your son has had a very serious charge placed against him.  I cannot ignore that.”  Next the King turned to River and took her icy hands in his.  “I’m terribly sorry that they have ruined your evening,” he offered kindly.

River bowed her head.  “Thank you, your majesty.  But if there is truth to these accusations then I shall be forever grateful for an enlightening evening.”  She stared at her future father-in-law trying to discern if he knew more than he was saying.  The Duke had the grace to look away.

The rest of the dinner guests left whispering furiously about what had happened.  Who cared if they’d missed out on a royal feast?  They had enough gossip to feed on for days.  The main party adjourned to more private rooms and the servants rushed in to clean up the mess.

 

“Wilfred, you’re close to John, do you know the young lady in question?”

Wilfred shook his head.  “Sadly no, he never spoke her name.  All I know is that they met last spring here in Capitol, your son is in love with her but she’s a commoner.”

The Queen gasped.  “He can’t be!  Not with a commoner.  Oh, I knew something was up, that something was going on...”she shook her head sadly.  His was not the first heart to be broken for being born on the wrong side of the social coin.  Sarah Jane’s best friend at the Academy had fallen in love with the wrong man and had endured a loveless marriage for years before dying of a broken heart.

The King frowned.  “Let’s not cloud the issue here.  Kidnapping is against the law whether she is a commoner or not.”

“But could Harry be right?” the Queen pressed.

The Duke snorted, “Of course he’s right.  Who are you going to believe:  my son or some common wench?” But the other’s ignored him. 

“Alistair, did she flirt and lead Harry on once she realized John was out of her reach?  Is she some gold digger trying to use a honey trap?” the Queen worried.

Wilfred shook his head.  “Not the way John tells it.  He believes Harry deliberately set out to use his feelings for this girl to hurt him.  You know Harry has always been jealous of John.  Shoot, the whole Saxon clan is jealous of Smyth thanks to us having worn the crown these last few generations.”  Wilfred frowned at Davros who did not seem even remotely shocked at the kidnapping charge.

“Every Kingship Tournament is fair and impartial,” asserted the King.

“That doesn’t mean the loser likes it,” Wilfred muttered and the King and Queen had to agree.

 

After some more discussion, the King sent for his son.

“I’m sorry for my outburst tonight in front of your guests,” John apologized.  He tried to stand straight and still but his continued fury towards Harry had him fairly vibrating in his shoes.

“Forgiven,” granted the King.  “I suspected something was up with you when you came in.  I should have questioned you before we joined our guests.  Now, tell us exactly what happened.”

John relayed what he’d told Wilfred earlier that day.  How he’d gone to visit his friend only to find her mother distraught and the daughter missing.  He explained how he’d been able to track them to a disreputable spot and how he’d persuaded the bartender to give him the key to where she was prisoner.  He told them what state she was in when he found her and how he’d taken her back home to her mother. 

He managed to speak in a reasonably calm manner, keeping his report concise and his words clipped.  However, when he got to the part about describing the room she’d been held prisoner in, her injuries and what she had said Harry had told her was to happen to her, he nearly lost it.  His fists clenched impotently and his voice shook.  He blinked back hot tears of anger.

“You love her, don’t you?” his mother asked softly.  She was deeply moved by the tale and in particular by her son’s emotions.

“I do,” he confessed. 

“You can’t, you know that.”

“I still do, mother,” he replied resignedly.  “But this is about Harry, not me.  Harry used this girl and my feelings for her to hurt me and destroy her.  Such a deed cannot go unanswered.”

The King had listened quietly.  He’d been pleased to hear how his son had conducted himself and how he’d rescued this girl.  “I want to meet this girl who has caused two young men to brawl at my dinner party.” 

“She’s done nothing wrong, father.  She’s just been her own sweet self this whole time.”  John’s first instinct was to protect Rose.  As much as he wanted his parents to meet her, he didn’t want it to be under these circumstances.  He didn’t want her to have to confront her kidnapper.

“All the more why I want to see her for myself,” the King replied.  “You will give us her name and address. I will have this dealt with now, tonight.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you like who I chose to be John's parents, and the king and queen of Gallifrey? What about Harry's Dad? I had to come up with someone more twisted than even the Master...


	25. Interrogation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose is questioned by the King and Queen. Wildfred makes a discovery.

Two of the Elite Guard had appeared at their door just as they were washing up after the evening meal.  When they announced that she was to appear before the King, Rose felt sick.  Something had happened to John.  He and Harry had got into trouble and now the King was involved.  Frightened and nervous Rose quickly pulled on a clean dress and brushed out her hair before going with the guards. 

Jackie followed on their heels, reminding the silent men that she was Rose’s mother and she had a right to know what was going to happen to her only daughter.  No one stopped Jackie until they came to the royal apartments where she was forced to wait outside.

 

“Why are you wasting time on this low-born trash?” complained the Davros.  “My Harry should be present to defend himself against her allegations.”

“She didn’t make any allegations, my son did,” reminded the Queen.

“Do doubt he was deceived by her lies.”

 

Rose sank into a deep curtsy as soon as the door closed behind her.  She kept her eyes on the rug at her feet though she dearly wanted to stare at the room and its occupants.

“You are Rose Tyler?”

“Yes your majesty.”

“Rise and come closer.”

“Welcome, my dear,” greeted the Queen.  “We are most curious to meet you.”

“Indeed,” agreed the King.  “You have created quite a stir this evening.”

“Yes, your majesties.  I’m truly sorry.”  Neither John nor Harry was present and Rose desperately wanted to ask about them.  She bit her lip.

“That is why we have called you here: to determine if you truly have anything to be sorry about.  Now if you please, tell us how you met our son.”

Rose told about the three young men coming into the shop last spring and how they introduced themselves.  (She didn’t tell them about the ladder and the water.)  She explained that after some time Harry and Jack had left while John stayed.  She went on to apologize for the sorry state of her shop and her inability to quickly find the parts John had wanted.

“Did you know the three of them before that day?”

Rose blushed, “No, I am embarrassed to say I didn’t.  I didn’t realize who they were until afterwards.  I’m afraid to confess I haven’t followed the royal families too carefully.  That’s not my world, you see.  Other than your selves,” she looked at the King and Queen, “I’d be hard pressed to know anyone without a proper introduction.” 

The man dressed in severe black on black was red in the face and seemed to mutter something about “ignorant chit” and “manipulating liar”.  The Queen frowned at him.  The other man, the one with a scruffy beard and soft eyes chuckled quietly.

“So you had no designs to seduce a young royal and gain a foothold into a better life?” the King asked bluntly.

Rose’s paled. “No your majesty!  Absolutely not!  With all due respect, I quite like my life.” Except that she couldn’t be with the man she loved.  “I’m proud of the fact that mum and I have make a go of it on our own.  I’m forever grateful for the patronage of your son and how his association has improved the number and quality of our customers, but I never aspired to be anything more to him than a friend.”

“Just you and your mother?  You have no father?” the Queen was interested in her situation.

“No your majesty, he died just after I was born.”

“And no brothers or sisters?”

“I am the eldest.”

“And you have no other family?”

“My mother was born and raised in Saxony, but they are all gone now.”  Age, illness and accident had ruthlessly pruned their family tree.

“And your father’s family?  Tyler is it?”

“Yes, Peter Tyler, but I’m afraid I know nothing about him.  Neither does my mother.  Apparently he never spoke of it and she thought he was an orphan or perhaps even a foundling.”

“Rootless, shiftless trash,” muttered the man in black.

“What is your mother’s family name then?” the Queen asked kindly, ignoring the rude comment.

“Prentice.”

The King arched an eyebrow at the Duke.  His obsession with lineage was legendary.  Prentice was a fine old family name.  There were many distinguished Prentices in the history of both Saxony and Gallifrey; pity they weren’t royal.

“Yes, yes this is all very nice.  But her family background hardly signifies other than to establish that she is a commoner,” interrupted the angry man. “My son stands accused of kidnapping and abusing this girl and there is no evidence.  You can’t take her word over his.”

Rose’s eyes widened in dismayed recognition: the man in black was Harry’s father.  That made him Davros, the Duke of Saxony, the Chancellor to the King.  The hatred she saw in his grey eyes as they flashed towards her made her step back in fright.  _What had I done to be hated so by such a powerful stranger?_   That injustice sparked Rose’s temper and she was emboldened to respond.

“What kind of evidence are you looking for?  Does this mean anything?”  Angrily Rose pushed back the sleeves of her dress to show the marks left by her restraints.  “Harry put bracelets on me that were chained together so that my hands were bound.  These marks are from how I tried to escape.”  She pointed to her cheeks and lips.  “This rash and chaffing is from the tape he used to silence me so I could not call for help.”  The Queen gasped.

“So you have been abused.  That doesn’t name my son as your abductor.”

“I can tell you the name of the place where he held me captive, although I doubt you’ll get honest information from the people there.  Harry seemed to have them under his control.”  Rose blinked back the tears but her voice still quavered with her last words.  “Why do you hate me so much?”

The Duke was startled at such a direct question.  “I don’t hate you,” he denied.

Rose looked back at him disbelieving.  She knew hatred when she saw it.

The man with the scruffy beard spoke up.  He’d been quietly listening to the exchange.  He liked how this girl had answered candidly, refusing to be intimidating by the important people before her.  It was obvious that she was nervous but she didn’t let that stop her.  She even dared to challenge the Duke on his snobbery.  John had chosen well.  “I have a question:  how old are you, girl?”

“I shall be 16 in the spring.”

The man nodded to himself.  “Bit young to be running a shop – shouldn’t you still be in school?”

“I finished Early School, but yes then I had to stop.  Mum needed me to get the Emporium running.”

“Because it’s just the two of you; your dad died when you were a baby.”

“Yes...”

“Wilfred, what are you going on about?” _Wilfred!_   That was John’s uncle then, the man John said was more a dad to him than his own father.  Rose felt a sliver of relief for here was someone that she was predisposed to like.

“How did your dad die, Rose Tyler?”

“It was an accident: a loaded cart rolled back and crushed him.”

“An accident you say?  Somehow I doubt it,” mumbled Wilfred.

“Wilfred?” asked the King again.

“Alistair, bring in the boys!  Hohoho!  Yes, yes that makes perfect sense now,” Wilfred was on his feet, doing a shuffle dance and nodding happily. 

“Wilfred!”

“Bring them in, bring them in.  Bring her mother in too, no doubt she’s out there lurking about.  Everyone needs to hear this,” he rubbed his hands gleefully and stubbornly refused to say anything more until all were assembled.

“This is ridiculous.  There is no proof to link my son with this...this girl!  Harry and I are leaving, tonight.”

“Not so fast, Davros, I haven’t decided anything yet.”


	26. Revelation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wilfred drops the proverbial bomb and everything changes.

When the guards brought in John and Harry both young men sought out Rose with their eyes, although their facial expressions were quite different.  Harry was cold, indifferent, and almost harsh.  John was tender, warm and encouraging.  Repulsed by the one, Rose longed to go to the other, but didn’t think she was allowed.  Did one move about in a room without the leave of the King?  Nervously she stood still and waited.

Wilfred straightened his jacket, smoothed his tie and nodded to each person in the room gravely. “Rose Tyler is the late Duke of Arcadia’s granddaughter.”

Shocked silence met the announcement.

Finally the King held up his hand.  “Wilfred, brother, you had better explain yourself.”

Wilfred then reminded them of the late Duke’s dilemma, how he and his wife had only had daughters.  “John, you’re the one who reminded me of all this when you spoke of abdication.”

The King shot his son a worried look. 

“The old duke only had one son, and that by his mistress so he got special permission to have the boy named heir.  By the time he had given up hoping to have a legitimate son, that boy was already nearly sixteen.”

The King nodded.  “I remember him.  He had a lot of trouble at the Academy fitting in.”

Wilfred nodded. “None of us were very kind to him, I’m sorry to say.  Looking back I realize it must have been a terribly hard, having to adapt to a whole new life and set of expectations.”  He stared at the Duke until the Duke broke eye contact.  Davos had been the cruelest of them all.

“I can’t even remember his name,” confessed the Queen.

“Peter of Arcadia, but his mother’s last name was Tyler.  And that’s the name he took back when he abdicated: Peter Tyler.”

Jackie gasped and sat down suddenly, totally forgetting royal protocol in favour of not fainting.  Rose felt dizzy too but stood her ground.  John went very pale but his eyes blazed hot.  Davros’ face went redder and Harry studied the ceiling.

“What?” thundered the King half rising from his seat.

“The timelines all fit, Alistair.  Peter left Arcadia and vanished.  Peter Tyler appears in Saxony and gets married.  When they start a family, suddenly he is killed off.”  Wilfred turned to Rose sadly, “And if you’d been a baby boy you probably would have had an accident too.”

“This is all your doing!” River accused Davros.  Everyone had forgotten she was even present, but now like an avenging angel she advanced on him.  “You and your damnable obsession over pure bloodlines and lineage!  We’re not horses, for goodness sake!” She quivered with righteous indignation. “You’re like a chess playing spider, pulling strings, moving pieces, removing threats to your perceived perfection.”  She pointed at Harry.  “You used him too, didn’t you?  Your own son!  You’re the one who told him to take Rose away.”

“Her upstart bastard father had no respect for tradition, for the fine heritage of our royal houses,” Davros protested.

“And you have no respect for human life!” rounded River.

“She’s an abomination!” 

River pulled off her engagement ring and dropped in on the floor at his feet.  “Apparently she’s my cousin!”  She spun away and walked over to where Rose stood rooted to the floor.  She placed a protective arm around her shoulders and addressed Harry.  “Sorry love, but I stand with family.”

Harry stood watching everything unravel with a strange feeling of detachment.  His father was an utter fool.

Jackie let out a small squeak.  “I...I married a duke?”

“Ex- duke,” corrected Wilfred.  “He gave up his seat to marry you.  Exactly what John was preparing to do for Rose.”

All eyes turned to John who crossed over to stand next to Rose.  He took her hand and threaded his fingers through hers.  River stepped back to stand near Jackie who was dabbing at her eyes.  “It’s true father.  I love her and I am determined to marry her.  I was going to make my appeal for abdication tomorrow with the hopes of giving Rose my offer for Christmas.”

“But you only met this year,” protested the Queen.  “Only a handful of times, how can you know this is love and not teenage infatuation?” She admired the pretty young girl and was curious to know her better, but she was far from believing that she’d make the perfect wife for her son, let alone be duchess and maybe even queen.

“Time is not a linear progression of events, mother.  A moment can be eternal. Forever can happen in the blink of an eye...or the touch of a hand.”  John smiled down at Rose, squeezing her hand.  “I knew the first day we met that she would change my life.”  Rose returned his smile and leaned into his shoulder.  She had no words for all thoughts swirling around in her head.

The King stood up.

“This is my understanding of the situation.  Rose Tyler is a long-lost royal of the house of Arcadia.  Naturally formal genetic testing will be conducted, but based on what I’ve heard, and who has been involved, I’m disturbingly confident of the outcome.”He frowned as he looked at father and son. “This secret was known to the house of Saxony, namely Davros and Harry, and they – for their own sick and twisted pleasure – attempted to not only keep the secret but destroy the innocent.   For these crimes I shall have to meditate upon their punishment and consult with High Council.   In the meantime they shall remain under guard in the Citadel.” He nodded to the guards.  “If there is any resistance or suspicion of unsavory behaviour, upgrade their confinement to the dungeon immediately.”

The Saxons were speedily and nosily dispatched to the relief of everyone else.

The King turned his attention to the young couple.  “I am gravely displeased that my only son would take his duty and responsibilities to the duchy of Smyth so lightly as to give them up,” he raised a hand to forestall the protests coming from all sides, “but I am deeply impressed with his courage and conviction to forsake his power and privilege for the love of another.  Thankfully abdication is no longer necessary as the object of his affection has been discovered to be a royal after all.  Young lady, I shall be very pleased to get to know you better.  Obviously you have impressed our son, but you have also impressed us.  John has declared his desire to marry you, but you have not indicated to us that you would accept his suit.  You gave such a convincing speech about liking your present life that I must wonder if you wish to make such a drastic change.”  The King’s eyes sparkled with repressed amusement.

Rose blushed.  “I love your son, sire,” she said simply. “Yes, I would marry him.”

The King held out his hand to the Queen who rose gracefully.  “Then this is our decision: you shall immediately enter into a formal period of courtship.  If after one year your feelings for each other are the same, and your heritage is confirmed, we will approve an engagement.”  Before John could complain about the lengthy process, his father added. “And the engagement can be mercifully short.”  The King winked and wrapped an arm about the Queen who blushed prettily.

Wilfred let out an undignified whoop and Jackie burst into happy tears.  John swung Rose into his arms and kissed her right there in front of everyone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just one more chapter to go!


	27. Happily Ever After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A summary of what happens next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last chapter! I had a lot of fun creating this fantasy/fairy tale world with its mix of medieval and futuristic elements. It was a challenge to write about beloved adult characters as young people and I hope that I was able to keep them true to their future selves while giving them more youthful and inexperienced behaviours.

That very night the genetic testing was conducted and returned positive.

Messengers left the Citadel for parts of Gallifrey.  One went to Donna to let her know their sham courtship was finally over and she was free to go to her true love.  One went to her parents to inform them that their eldest daughter, River had broken off her engagement to Harry Saxon and had left to travel abroad alone.  One of them went to Jack to tell him how Wilfred had saved the day and to come quickly to the Citadel.  All the messages announced the discovery of a long-lost royal, Rose Marion of Arcadia. 

 

The very next day the High Council convened.  They were not in a generous mood having been assembled so close to Christmas, but neither did they want to start a war with Saxony which a lengthy and unlawful detainment of their duke and son would undoubtedly incite.  They remained in sequestered debate for two full days, mindful that they would face civil war in their own homes if they didn’t settle matters before Christmas Eve.

On the morning of Christmas Eve the decision was handed down.  Due to the lack of hard evidence and without confessions (Davros had recanted everything, saying he was provoked and distraught over his son’s wrongful arrest and Harry was steadfastly silent to all charges) the Saxons were to be released and escorted under guard back to Saxony. 

The stain however of the accusations remained and as such had severely damaged the faith and trust the High Council and the King of Gallifrey had in these nobles.  The office of Chancellor was forthwith removed from Davros duke of Saxony and was to be installed upon Lee McAvoy, Earl of Arcadia before the New Year.  This shift in the balance of power put Saxony at a political disadvantage but seemed a small gesture in light of their alleged grievous acts.   In his proclamation the King expressed the hope that future generations of Saxons would prove stellar citizens worthy of resuming their rightful place in the governing of Gallifrey.

 

John and Rose were barely aware of what was happening in the High Council chambers, although Jack did his best to relay the salient points.  They were too engrossed in each other and in the wonderful new world that had suddenly opened up to them.  For so long they had been burdened under the conviction that they had no future and now it seemed they were to be blessed with more than they imagined.  They were often seen grinning like loons for no obvious reason.

 

The last few days before Christmas business at the Emporium exploded.  News that an actual royal worked in the shop brought the curious as well as the serious shoppers.  Rose quickly hired Keisha and Shareen to help over Christmas break.  She and John discussed hiring some permanent staff, maybe training a manager to take over.  Rose was reluctant to sell the Emporium as it was her only link to her dad.  John agreed that made good business sense.  Even though they would be Duke and Duchess of Smyth, it didn’t hurt to have businesses interests outside the duchy. 

“The duchies have always been very territorial in their three legged approach to governing Gallifrey, placing allegiance to their house over allegiance to the realm.  Perhaps it’s time to make changes to that culture,” the Doctor observed.

“Well, look at us,” Rose offered.  “I’m from Saxony and Arcadia, and you’re from Smyth.  I was raised as a commoner, you were raised as a royal, but here we are together.  We’re starting our own cultural revolution.”

 

John turned twenty-one and was invested with his new title Duke of Smyth.  Travel between Smyth and Capitol was often and letters flew when feet could not.  The young couple rejoiced in being able to communicate openly and while the Duke’s duties often demanded his full time and attention, the temporary separation seemed an easy trial after what they had endured. 

 

River returned to Arcadia with an exotic young man from the southern continent just in time to stand up for her sister as she married the new Chancellor.  Rumours flew that she would soon be announcing her own engagement, but River laughed them off saying she had learned a new philosophy and was taking a page from her cousin Captain Jack’s playbook on life.

 

The revelation that she, Jackie Prentice, had actually caught the enduring love of a royal, wrought change in Jackie.  Some changes were pleasant: she worried less about the future and started enjoying the present, she looked at Pete's junk with a more considerate eye, she (secretly) forgave Pete for dying so young and leaving her to raise their daughter alone.  Other changes were not quite so pleasant: she unceremoniously "dumped" Grocer Fred thinking she could do better; she harangued Rose and John about a lavish royal wedding since they were both only children and their parents "deserved" to see them married in the greatest way possible, she started to put on the dreaded "airs and graces" around the two apprentice hair stylists she took on to keep up with her expanding clientele.

  

The year of courtship sped along and on the next Christmas Eve the King proudly announced the engagement of John and Rose.  The wedding was set for the early spring, only a few short months away, but truly preparations had been quietly going on for nearly a year. Rose secured Wilfred to walk her down the aisle. Kiesha and Shareen played Rock-Paper-Scissors to see who would be her maid of honour and who would be bridesmaid.  John naturally had Jack for his best man and to the shock of almost everyone he chose Mickey to be groomsman.  His reasoning was a secret, but those who were in the know thought it was very appropriate, and a promising sign of Galifrey’s new culture.

Despite Jackie's one-woman campaign, the ceremony was as simple as possible for such an important family and all of Capitol and Smyth attended lavish parties of their own to celebrate.  John and Rose went on a yearlong honeymoon, travelling all over Gallifrey and beyond while Wilfred once more took up the reins as regent in their absence.

 

Harry quietly married Lady Christiana De Souza.  His father was paralyzed in a freak hunting accident and a few months later succumbed to complications while the newlyweds honeymooned.  Harry returned home to become the next Saxon Duke.  Other news from Saxony was nonexistent.

 

It is safe to say that they all lived happily ever after. 

Weeeeeell, at least until it was time for another King’s Tournament...but that is another adventure entirely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for your likes, kudos and comments! You are such a blessing and encouragement to me. I truly hope you enjoyed my fanciful tale of heros and villians and true love. Long live the wonderful characters of DW!


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